Fred Thompson Fundraising Going Well - Campaign staffers pleased

Updated data: Fred Thompson's campaign funds were higher than potentially expected by his staffers on Monday. Donations this 1st Quarter = $9.3 million (mostly since September 5th); Total Donations since June 4th = $12.7 million (yes people donated $3.4 million before Fred Thompson even announced).
Bill Smith, ARRA Editor: In an effort to learn more about what is going on inside the Fred Thompson campaign, we probed sources inside the campaign who revealed that campaign fundraising is going well. Despite officially entering the race less than one month ago, Fred Thompson will soon be announcing fundraising totals in the area of $8 million. Additional facts worth noting are that:
(1) More than 60% of that $8 million came in after Thompson’s Sept. announcement. This first "quarter” was mostly the month of September.
(2) Donation levels post-announcement equaled approximately $200,000 per day.
(3) Donor base is now around 70,000 people. That is a first quarter donor base larger than that revealed by other Republican candidates.
The campaign appears to be finding financial success as the Fred-heads rallied to the campaign.

Staffers were also pleased with a The New York Times article yesterday by Jo Becker about Fred Thompson's time as a U.S. Senator. The story identifies that the “lazy like a fox” charge stems from the fact that Thompson avoided the DC song and dance / schmoozing in favor of detailed study of policy. Thompson chose to prioritize issues – entitlements, term limits, tax reform – that had more impact on the government than on the headlines. Excerpts from the article reveal that:

“Mr. Thompson brought a lawyer’s sensibility to his deliberations, rather than that of a rote partisan…”

“Records show that Mr. Thompson delved into the areas that mattered most to him, regularly writing his own speeches and demanding detailed memorandums that often ran well past the one-page limit favored by some senators.”

“He focused on green-eyeshade issues like budget and regulatory reform that, while not exactly the stuff of headlines, have far-reaching impact.”

“On the lazy charge, I have to chuckle because I was there sometimes until 1 in the morning working with the man,” said Paul Noe, a Thompson aide when the senator led the Governmental Affairs Committee.

“In confidential surveys sent out by the Senate Republican leadership, Mr. Thompson recommended giving priority to issues like Congressional term limits and overhauling welfare, entitlement programs and the tax code.”

“In an interview, Mr. Thompson said his priorities had not changed. The government’s primary responsibility is to address such problems as “a growing bureaucracy becoming more and more incompetent,” he said, adding that keeping the focus on such issues is 'a politically good thing, too.'”

. . . [Full Story]

---

Tags: campaign funds, Election 2008, Fred Thompson, presidential candidate, Republican