Pretty soon, Susan and I may see some kind of windfall from the grand poobahs.
At least 80 wealthy liberals have pledged to contribute $1 million or more apiece to fund a network of think tanks and advocacy groups to compete with the potent conservative infrastructure built up over the past three decades.
The money will be channeled through a new partnership called the Democracy Alliance…
Why are they doing this?
(Rob) Stein, who closely examined the finances of institutions on the right and left over the past two years, contends that there is a huge financial imbalance favoring conservatives that he puts at $295 million vs. $75 million.
In 2003, the 19 progressive organizations with budgets exceeding $1 million spent a total of $75 million, he said. In contrast, the 24 national think tanks on the right had $170 million in spending, along with state-based policy centers’ $50 million and campus-based conservative policy organizations’ $75 million to $100 million, according to Stein.
No wonder we’re getting our asses kicked. But what about the bloggers?
In addition, the number of liberal bloggers on the Web has been growing at a fast pace, and their blogs have become both central forums for debate over party strategies and hugely successful vehicles for campaign fundraising, including raising through online contributions more than two thirds of the $750,000 used in the surprisingly competitive House campaign of Democrat Paul Hackett in Ohio. (Simon) Rosenberg has created the
New Politics Institute, an organization that works with bloggers.
Winter is coming. Will these guys help pay the heating bill?
But seriously, we are getting organized. Chris Bowers is doing some great things on the local netroots front. Markos and Joe Trippi are thinking nationally. And now some real cash is coming to help pay the bartabs.
