Romney event nets more than $6.5m
Romney event nets more than $6.5mBy Scott Helman, Globe Staff January 9, 2007
Former governor Mitt Romney put on an unusual public fund-raising display for his presidential campaign yesterday, raising more than $6.5 million in an effort observers say was designed to intimidate rivals looking to challenge him for the conservative vote.
Boston.com Sign up for: Globe Headlines e-mail Breaking News Alerts But one of those likely opponents, Senator Sam Brownback of Kansas, chose to highlight Romney's past moderate positions on abortion rights and gay rights, announcing that seven conservative Massachusetts activists will back him over Romney.
Romney's highly choreographed event, held at the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center, drew 400 of his biggest supporters, who spent all day soliciting money from friends and contacts around the country.
"They blew me away with their success," Romney told reporters at an evening news conference. "And we will be able to continue to build slowly but surely a highly successful financial effort and campaign. This is not, if you will, a big flash and disappearance."
Tom Tellefsen, a private investor from California and one of Romney's national finance cochairmen, said the daylong blitz would "send a very strong message" to others in the race, both to top-tier rivals such as Senator John McCain of Arizona and former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani, and to "those that are considering or haven't really yet laid the groundwork that maybe they should have."
RELATED STORY: Weld backs Romney for Oval Office
But if that was the message, the Brownback campaign didn't get it. Spokesman Rob Wasinger said in an e-mail that Brownback's conservative record was "an asset that money just cannot buy" and released a list of activists who he said "are tired of all the compromise and double-speak and are eager to support a true conservative."
The list included Dwight Duncan of Cambridge, a professor at Southern New England School of Law; Anne Fox of Needham, a past chairwoman of Massachusetts Citizens for Life; and R.T. Neary of Medfield, a past president of Massachusetts Citizens for Life.
Neary explained his decision yesterday by saying that Brownback, who is expected to formally announce his candidacy Jan. 20 in Topeka, has "established credentials" on life issues. "Our governor, Mitt Romney, is a latecomer, if he is even a prolifer," Neary said.
In 1994 and 2002, Romney expressed support for abortion rights, but says he has since shifted to a "firmly prolife" position. The resurfacing of his remarks has stirred political trouble for Romney in recent weeks.
James Gilmore, a former Virginia governor and former chairman of the Republican National Committee, said at a GOP event last week that he intends to run as the race's true conservative, according to the Hotline, the political newsletter; Gilmore is expected to file papers today setting up a presidential exploratory committee. Governor Mike Huckabee of Arkansas is also eyeing a run as a conservative for the 2008 nomination.Continued...
Page 2 of 2 --But while Brownback, Gilmore, and Huckabee may challenge Romney for the conservative vote, none has built nearly the base of donors and activists in key primary states that Romney has. Observers say that if Romney can continue doing what he did yesterday, tapping into that infrastructure to raise millions of dollars, he could position himself as the one viable presidential candidate most palatable to conservative voters.
"That could be one of Romney's real advantages over the other candidates who are trying to market themselves to social conservatives," said Dante Scala, a political science professor at Saint Anselm College in Goffstown, N.H.
James A. Thurber, director of the Center for Congressional and Presidential Studies at American University, said, "That's why he's doing this and getting out front and trying to marginalize some of those second-tier candidates."
Romney denied yesterday that he was trying to signal anything to his opponents.
"No message to rivals today," Romney said. "This is a message to Ann and me, to our family, and to our friends that what we stand for and what we're going to fight for has been heard, that our friends are behind us, that they're supporting us in remarkable ways. And that gives us the energy and the enthusiasm and the motivation to go forward with our message."
RELATED STORY: Weld backs Romney for Oval Office
Romney's campaign said before yesterday's event that it hoped to raise $1 million, but it's clear it expected more. His supporters commanded a 38,000-square-foot room on the third floor of the convention center, which was filled with tables with phones and laptops.
At the lead table was William F. Weld, former Massachusetts governor, who alternated between making phone calls and checking his BlackBerry, and Kerry Healey, former lieutenant governor, and her husband, Sean. "We're going to do our best to make sure that Mitt has the best send-off possible," Kerry Healey said yesterday morning.
After entering the hall to the Supertramp anthem "Give a Little Bit" (as covered by the Goo Goo Dolls), Romney spoke about why he was running and proceeded to a phone to make his first fund-raising call to his oldest sister, Lynn, who lives outside Detroit.
"How are you?" Romney asked her.
"Good, how are you, Mitt?" she said. "This is an exciting day, isn't it?" She pledged $2,100, the maximum allowable contribution.
Romney's army of volunteers used an Internet-based database built by his campaign that it's calling ComMitt, which allows fund-raisers to log donations and access information about Romney's positions on various issues. The idea, according to Romney finance director Spencer Zwick, was for his supporters to use their own contacts -- Christmas card lists, for example -- and not to be handed a list of names to cold-call.
"While you see every one person here at the phone, what's behind them . . . [are] legions of other people and other supporters that they've worked with," said Romney campaign spokesman Kevin Madden.
One of Romney's top advisers, Tom Rath, an influential Republican National Committee member from New Hampshire, told reporters yesterday that any serious presidential candidate must raise $60 million to $75 million this year.
Much of that has to be done in the next six to eight months, he said, before candidates are too busy doing events in primary states to headline many fund-raisers. "Early money is really the mother's milk to these things," Rath said.
Four of Romney's sons were also on hand for the fund-raising kickoff, including his oldest, Tagg, 36.
"I don't know that you can ever be totally prepared because you can't really know what's going to happen," he said. "But everyone understands that there will be personal sacrifices, that you give certain things up. And that's what's required right now."
Scott Helman can be reached at shelman@globe
http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2007/01/09/romney_event_nets_more_than_65m/?page=1
Former governor Mitt Romney put on an unusual public fund-raising display for his presidential campaign yesterday, raising more than $6.5 million in an effort observers say was designed to intimidate rivals looking to challenge him for the conservative vote.
Boston.com Sign up for: Globe Headlines e-mail Breaking News Alerts But one of those likely opponents, Senator Sam Brownback of Kansas, chose to highlight Romney's past moderate positions on abortion rights and gay rights, announcing that seven conservative Massachusetts activists will back him over Romney.
Romney's highly choreographed event, held at the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center, drew 400 of his biggest supporters, who spent all day soliciting money from friends and contacts around the country.
"They blew me away with their success," Romney told reporters at an evening news conference. "And we will be able to continue to build slowly but surely a highly successful financial effort and campaign. This is not, if you will, a big flash and disappearance."
Tom Tellefsen, a private investor from California and one of Romney's national finance cochairmen, said the daylong blitz would "send a very strong message" to others in the race, both to top-tier rivals such as Senator John McCain of Arizona and former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani, and to "those that are considering or haven't really yet laid the groundwork that maybe they should have."
RELATED STORY: Weld backs Romney for Oval Office
But if that was the message, the Brownback campaign didn't get it. Spokesman Rob Wasinger said in an e-mail that Brownback's conservative record was "an asset that money just cannot buy" and released a list of activists who he said "are tired of all the compromise and double-speak and are eager to support a true conservative."
The list included Dwight Duncan of Cambridge, a professor at Southern New England School of Law; Anne Fox of Needham, a past chairwoman of Massachusetts Citizens for Life; and R.T. Neary of Medfield, a past president of Massachusetts Citizens for Life.
Neary explained his decision yesterday by saying that Brownback, who is expected to formally announce his candidacy Jan. 20 in Topeka, has "established credentials" on life issues. "Our governor, Mitt Romney, is a latecomer, if he is even a prolifer," Neary said.
In 1994 and 2002, Romney expressed support for abortion rights, but says he has since shifted to a "firmly prolife" position. The resurfacing of his remarks has stirred political trouble for Romney in recent weeks.
James Gilmore, a former Virginia governor and former chairman of the Republican National Committee, said at a GOP event last week that he intends to run as the race's true conservative, according to the Hotline, the political newsletter; Gilmore is expected to file papers today setting up a presidential exploratory committee. Governor Mike Huckabee of Arkansas is also eyeing a run as a conservative for the 2008 nomination.Continued...
Page 2 of 2 --But while Brownback, Gilmore, and Huckabee may challenge Romney for the conservative vote, none has built nearly the base of donors and activists in key primary states that Romney has. Observers say that if Romney can continue doing what he did yesterday, tapping into that infrastructure to raise millions of dollars, he could position himself as the one viable presidential candidate most palatable to conservative voters.
"That could be one of Romney's real advantages over the other candidates who are trying to market themselves to social conservatives," said Dante Scala, a political science professor at Saint Anselm College in Goffstown, N.H.
James A. Thurber, director of the Center for Congressional and Presidential Studies at American University, said, "That's why he's doing this and getting out front and trying to marginalize some of those second-tier candidates."
Romney denied yesterday that he was trying to signal anything to his opponents.
"No message to rivals today," Romney said. "This is a message to Ann and me, to our family, and to our friends that what we stand for and what we're going to fight for has been heard, that our friends are behind us, that they're supporting us in remarkable ways. And that gives us the energy and the enthusiasm and the motivation to go forward with our message."
RELATED STORY: Weld backs Romney for Oval Office
Romney's campaign said before yesterday's event that it hoped to raise $1 million, but it's clear it expected more. His supporters commanded a 38,000-square-foot room on the third floor of the convention center, which was filled with tables with phones and laptops.
At the lead table was William F. Weld, former Massachusetts governor, who alternated between making phone calls and checking his BlackBerry, and Kerry Healey, former lieutenant governor, and her husband, Sean. "We're going to do our best to make sure that Mitt has the best send-off possible," Kerry Healey said yesterday morning.
After entering the hall to the Supertramp anthem "Give a Little Bit" (as covered by the Goo Goo Dolls), Romney spoke about why he was running and proceeded to a phone to make his first fund-raising call to his oldest sister, Lynn, who lives outside Detroit.
"How are you?" Romney asked her.
"Good, how are you, Mitt?" she said. "This is an exciting day, isn't it?" She pledged $2,100, the maximum allowable contribution.
Romney's army of volunteers used an Internet-based database built by his campaign that it's calling ComMitt, which allows fund-raisers to log donations and access information about Romney's positions on various issues. The idea, according to Romney finance director Spencer Zwick, was for his supporters to use their own contacts -- Christmas card lists, for example -- and not to be handed a list of names to cold-call.
"While you see every one person here at the phone, what's behind them . . . [are] legions of other people and other supporters that they've worked with," said Romney campaign spokesman Kevin Madden.
One of Romney's top advisers, Tom Rath, an influential Republican National Committee member from New Hampshire, told reporters yesterday that any serious presidential candidate must raise $60 million to $75 million this year.
Much of that has to be done in the next six to eight months, he said, before candidates are too busy doing events in primary states to headline many fund-raisers. "Early money is really the mother's milk to these things," Rath said.
Four of Romney's sons were also on hand for the fund-raising kickoff, including his oldest, Tagg, 36.
"I don't know that you can ever be totally prepared because you can't really know what's going to happen," he said. "But everyone understands that there will be personal sacrifices, that you give certain things up. And that's what's required right now."
Scott Helman can be reached at shelman@globe
http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2007/01/09/romney_event_nets_more_than_65m/?page=1
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