OOPS...:

Obama blames Wall St. crisis on Republican policy (TERENCE HUNT, 9/15/08, AP)

Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama said Monday the upheaval on Wall Street was "the most serious financial crisis since the Great Depression" and blamed it on policies that he said Republican rival John McCain supports.

Lehman’s Political Largess (Leslie Wayne, 9/12/08, NY Times: DealBook)

A study by the Center for Responsive Politics, a Washington group that tracks campaign finance data, found that Lehman currently ranks No. 4 among all securities firms and investment banks in contributions to federal parties and candidates. Goldman Sachs, a perennial heavyweight on the political scene, leads the pack, having donated $4.3 million in this election cycle on the federal level. [...]

A total of 64 percent of the donations went to Democrats, while 36 percent went to Republicans.

When it comes to the presidential race, Lehman employees were among the top contributors to both Senator Barack Obama and Senator John McCain. Lehman employees gave $370, 524 to Mr. Obama and $117,500 to Mr. McCain.

...the Unicorn Rider appears confused about just who supports whom here.

MORE:
And, thanks to the hubris that saw him forego public financing, he has to spend every day selling more influence, Obama needs more cash (JEANNE CUMMINGS | 9/14/08, Politico)

While Obama's campaign coffers are brimming, an effort to funnel money into battleground state party committees lags far behind campaign goals and Republican giving.

Finally, McCain-friendly outside groups already are mobilizing and launching independent attack ads on the Illinois senator. Meanwhile, Obama has sent word to the Democratic community that he wouldn't welcome similar independent groups working on his behalf — essentially sidelining what could have been critical allies.

Those complex dynamics are likely to put additional pressure on Obama and his financing team. The enormity of the task is already fraying nerves in Chicago and eating into the Illinois senator’s campaign time as the campaign combs the country for both small and big donations.

“It’s a logistically challenging fundraising environment they face, because time is not on their side and their goals are so ambitious,” said Anthony Corrado, an expert on money and politics.

“Do the math. They have to raise about $3 million a day” to reach an estimated target of about $200 million, he added.

That helps explain why a steady stream of electronic donation appeals was flying out of the Obama headquarters throughout the Democratic convention in Denver.

He's not going to get $3 million a day from small donors.

Posted by Orrin Judd at September 15, 2008 8:14 AM