Isn't this another one of those incessant "Obama's problem with X" articles? Had Obama accepted public funding, it would be all about how the limitations that come with it are killing him.

Particularly intriguing is this:

Obama has to devote a substantial chunk of his time to fundraising, time he could otherwise spend campaigning.

As if the two were entirely distinct activities.

Couldn't find a single positive thing to report, Alex, eh? Pop on over to HuffPo -- they have a few positive articles about the Dems you can rewrite and post here at War Room...

I'm off to send money to the Obama campaign.

I still plan to vote for Obama, and had planned to contribute (modestly) to his campaign. I was holding off doing so until the end of the primary race. And then he went and voted in favor of FISA and telecoms immunity. I may still change my mind, but my enthusiasm for Obama took a big hit (and I also remember his faith-based initiatives crap, etc.).

This presidential campaign is going to cost Salon more subscribers and readers than they ever feared. It's been nothing but ridiculous chase-the-microstory-of-the-minute since, when, February? Bleagh. Glenn Greenwald needs a new host site.

yeah, I gave him a lot of money during the primary campaign. But his votes this summer have definitely quashed my enthusiasm. I will of course vote for him, but it is harder to justify sending him more of my money. Maybe it's time to consider giving some money to the party. Now that McCain picked his crazy religious zealot running mate it might be time for a re-think.

That's what happens when you vote for FISA and let the GOP run roughshod all over you.

Show some spine. Face reality.

As Obama learned when he got burned by his God and guns quote.

The fact of the matter is that even if Obama were to get all of the money he needs, his campaign is still being beaten badly on message. Lackluster fundraising is just one more symptom of what Obama lacks--experience and the ability to sink his teeth into the race and fight for it. Elections are not intellectual exercises and Obama needs to wake up to that fact.

In all, he has it very easy in all of his previous campaigns and now he has to fight for it and he isn't.

WASHINGTON - Democrat Barack Obama says he would delay rescinding President Bush's tax cuts on wealthy Americans if he becomes the next president and the economy is in a recession, suggesting such an increase would further hurt the economy.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080907/ap_on_el_pr/obama_3

Obama said "I think Ronald Reagan changed the trajectory of America in a way that Richard Nixon did not and in a way that Bill Clinton did not"......guess I shouldn't be surprised he supports Reagan/Bush's trickle down policies.

With Democrats and progressives in general. While the Republicans are in full attack mode-- no introspection and whining there-- we manage to come up with lugubrious, self-defeating, navel gazing tripe like this to maunder on about.

As another writer pointed out, if Obama lost after accepting public financing he would blame the restrictions that come with public financing. If he loses after not accepting it, what's the excuse? That he had to spend too much time fundraising? That his forecasts were overoptimistic due to the Bush-McCain recession?

If private financing doesn't work out for Obama he has only himself to blame. He could have gone the public route, and as an added benefit he would have only flip-flopped 742 times instead of 743. After all, he was for it before he was against it.

Why am I getting a horrible sinking feeling after reluctantly getting on the Obama bandwagon? Am I REALLY going to have to say I told you so in November when the double-whammy error of not choosing Hillary -- twice -- is revealed?

I even made my first contribution to Obama -- $100 -- yesterday like the dutiful good doobie I'm supposed to be. Will I be flushing THAT down the toilet just like the $$$ I gave to Hillary?

SOMEONE, do SOMETHING.

Add my note to the list of people who would have sent money to Obama or the DNC if not for the FISA vote.

FWIW - My money went to Cindy Sheehan's campaign.

lower poll numbers, less money, off message.

Could it be that obama isn't such a great campaign manager? Maybe it was just that hillary botched it so bad?

Against the Republican campaign machine obama seems to be falling apart.

That's a shame.

if he gives them hell.

I'm not going to send money if Obama doesn't give a shit.

Maybe some other people in the Democratic party would like to campaign for him, hmmm? Every night on various news stations all I see is McCain, Palin and 5 other surrogates blasting away... on the other side I see Obama.

Is anyone else going to campaiagn/fundraise for him? Or did they think that convention thing was enough...

OMG!

Look at that PILE!

Let's try to cover it up with money.

Sort of like Magic Christian in reverse.

They and their press wanted to run against this empty suit named Hussein-Obama because they knew they could take him down in 2 weeks. (actually it took about 2 nights.)

Now that they've done so and there is NO danger of Hillary getting the nomination, they have no reason to give him money.

Sad,but true. As for 30 years the Repubs win primarily by capitalizing on the hard left's self-destructive stupidity.

Nothing new here at all.

Raising $77,000,000 in a single month is insufficient for running a political campaign? Good lord.

I wasn't confident about Gore or Kerry. This is going Obama unless a big game changer comes along.

How many people were really enthused about Gore/Lieberman, or Kerry/Edwards? Yet Gore got the popular vote, and Kerry lost in another nailbiter.

This time, a lot of people are really excited about the candidate. It makes a big difference. You'll be surprised how many Republicans have laundry to do that day.

That doesn't mean it won't take work. We don't know exactly how the machines are rigged around the country, but I guarantee that, at the least, a few are. The kicker is that whether or not I'm right about that is irrelevant, because the machines have closed source and can't be independently audited. That's what I worry about.

If it's a straight, fair vote, Obama wins a landslide.