Obama already ahead of fundraising pace of 4 years ago, has raised more than double any GOP candidate, high tech cash has made up for Wall St. loss

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Obama already ahead of pace of 4 yrs. ago raising $88 million through Sept. 30 which is more than twice the $33 million Romney has raised.

11/3/11, "Obama Campaign Replaces Wall Street Defectors to Help Funding," Bloomberg, J. Salant

"The high technology Internet industry and trial lawyers are helping President Barack Obama avoid a potential fundraising liability caused in part by a drop in support from his biggest 2008 industry backer: Wall Street.

Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) employees rank first among Obama’s business givers, taking the spot investors at Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) held in the 2008 presidential cycle, according to the Center for Responsive Politics, a Washington-based research group.

Obama, 50, is exceeding his record fundraising pace of four years ago, even though he started later this time around.

He reported raising $88 million through Sept. 30, up from $80 million in 2007. That is more than twice the amount of money raised by the leading Republican presidential fundraiser, former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney. Romney reported $33 million in donations, some of it from Wall Street donors who once backed Obama.

“The strong totals indicate that he has been able to replace the defecting Wall Street donors and also indicate that Democratic discontent is still containable,” said Linda Fowler, a government professor at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire.

To reach out to high-tech employees, the campaign has started “Technology for Obama,” an on-line-based organization that is similar to those used by the campaign to reach out to such constituencies as women and Latinos."...

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