A Cozy Bundle for Obama

The Washington Post does a major analysis of Obama's fundraising. Though he does count more small donors among his campaign contributors, he has actively courted the billionaire set, most recently in San Francisco, and of course in Chicago:

The bundler list also sheds light on those who might seek to influence an Obama White House. It includes traditional Democratic givers -- Hollywood, trial lawyers and Wall Street -- and newcomers such as young hedge fund executives, Silicon Valley entrepreneurs, Chicago-based developers and members of the black business elite.

As you might recall, Tony Rezko, currently on trial, was a bundler for Obama.

And another image-spoiler for the supposedly new politics Big Hope:

The Obama-Bluhm connection startled members of Philadelphia's anti-casino groups who knew that the senator had resisted efforts to legalize gambling. It was "really surprising to find [Bluhm] in Obama's corner," said Debbie King, who helped start Mothers Against SugarHouse. "I was inclined to vote for Hillary. But when I heard Obama's criticism about gambling, I thought about changing my vote. Now I'm not sure what to do."

All of this might have something to do with Obama's loss in the polls. He's increasingly marked as a business as usual politician looking to cash in.

UPDATE: WSJ, "Obama's Switcheroo" on public financing, reneging on his campaign promise for the general election. Also this:

Mr. Obama has also made much of his campaign's pledge not to accept money from political action committees, raising the majority of his funds from small private donations. PACs typically make up less than 1% of overall election donations to Presidential candidates, so that's no sacrifice.

Industry PACs may not give directly to his campaign, but employees of industries may do so, and many of his contributors have come from executives and their spouses. For example, Mr. Obama leads all candidates in donations from the pharmaceutical industry and commercial banks, among other industries. According to the Center for Responsive Politics, which tracks fundraising in elections, Mr. Obama has received $528,765 from people in the pharmaceutical industry and $1,380,108 from commercial banks. He comes in second to Mrs. Clinton in donations from lawyers with $13,690,170, just over a million shy of her total.