You Got Yr. Moneybomb
Jonathan Allen reports on the blossoming of the Ron Paul fundraising network. The candidate isn't hoarding his list of donors…
Murray Sabrin, a New Jersey Senate candidate who has been endorsed by Paul, is expecting a "moneybomb" from his own backers and Paul's this Friday. Sabrin has raised $194,260 since launching his campaign last month, according to a calculator on his Web site.
"We're working hard to cultivate his previous donors and Murray's previous donors and donors across the country," said Sabrin consultant Adam Alonso.
Republican Rep. Walter B. Jones, a fellow Iraq war critic who faces a tough primary challenge in North Carolina coastal 3rd District, has rented access to Paul's list of donors in the state.
But Paul's imprimatur was not limited to the list itself: He sent out an e-mail soliciting help for Jones last week.
Jones said he already has raised about $5,000 from Paul supporters, which is not an insubstantial figure in a relatively inexpensive market. Jones had raised $192,185 through the end of December, and his rival for the GOP nomination, Joe McLaughlin, had collected $78,278.
Paul says lending a hand to his friends is old hat but acknowledges it's a bigger hat these days.
"I've been helping people for a long time. Nothing new about it," he said during a brief interview in the Capitol on Tuesday. "The degree might be different but the principle's the same."
The anti-war right was clearly spooked by the Gilchrest defeat this month, but Paul's belatedly crafting something that hasn't ever existed: an organic fundraising community for likeminded pols. I'd be shocked if one of them attracted the personality cult that Paul has, and plenty of the Paul moneybombers are waving off politics now that they know lightning won't strike and make him the GOP nominee. But how many of them are sticking around to tweak the GOP? We're finding out now.
