Obama Rakes in Millions of Hillary's Dollars

A few months ago Hillary Clinton was probably figuring that she's have a lock on the big bucks Hollywood crowd. Not so:

Checks from Hollywood's A-list stars such as George Clooney, Eddie Murphy and Barbra Streisand added up to an expected, one-night take of $1 million for Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama.

Three of the entertainment industry's biggest names _ DreamWorks studio founders Steven Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg and David Geffen _ planned a private, Beverly Hills fundraiser for the freshman senator from Illinois.

The lineup of celebrities writing checks read like a red carpet's who's who _ Tom Hanks, Denzel Washington and Ben Stiller among others.

Tickets to the fundraiser are $2,300, the maximum individual donation to a federal campaign, or $4,600 for a couple. A later, private dinner at Geffen's home is being held for fundraisers who brought in at least $46,000 for the evening.

The fundraiser underscored the intense competition among the party's leading 2008 candidates for Hollywood dollars and endorsements. The entertainment industry is a perennial source of cash for Democrats, with big names often donating to multiple campaigns while withholding formal endorsements until later.
Spielberg, for example, is a host of the event but has not made an endorsement. Katzenberg and Geffen are backing Obama.

The movie, television and recording industries gave $33.1 million to federal candidates and parties in 2004, with much of that coming from Hollywood, according to the nonprofit Center for Responsive Politics.

This has to worry the Hillary camp, though she probably won't have that much trouble replacing these lost funds. Still, it's better to have these big bucks folks on your side rather than pouring their money into a competitor's campaign.