McCain begins funding drive but Democrat coffers hard to beat

THIS is the week John McCain takes a measure of what the Republican presidential nomination is worth.

The Arizona senator, less than a week after securing enough delegates to become his party’s presidential standard-bearer, sets out on a nationwide fundraising drive aimed at restocking his campaign account.

Starting yesterday in St Louis, Missouri, continuing today in New York, tomorrow in Boston and other unannounced cities through Friday, McCain will reach out to the GOP faithful seeking their dollars.

It’s an uphill climb.

The Democratic candidates have easily outpaced the GOP hopeful, with Sen Barack Obama raising $55 million (€36m) in February alone and Sen Hillary Clinton collecting $35m.

An invitation to McCain’s event tomorrow night at the Taj Boston hotel is fairly typical: donations of $2,300 — the maximum allowable each primary and general election campaign — are required for a private reception with McCain.

A half an hour later, the tab drops to $1,000 per person for a more widely accessible general reception.

Among those expected to attend are the head of a major biotechnology company, Boston Scientific co- founder Peter Nicholas, as well as former Massachusetts Governor Jane Swift, a longtime McCain backer, and former Governor Paul Cellucci, who previously supported former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani.

There were conflicting reports about whether former McCain rival Mitt Romney would attend the event.

The task confronting McCain is stark. Obama and Clinton have far exceeded him in cash on hand.

As of January 31, Obama had raised $141m, with $25m cash on hand. Clinton had raised $138m and had $29m cash on hand.

By contrast, McCain has raised $55m and had $5.2m cash on hand at the end of January.

McCain and Obama have bickered over their pledge to confine themselves to public funding in the general election should they emerge as their respective party’s nominee, but that debate was rendered moot last week by Clinton’s re-emergence after big- ticket wins in the Ohio and Texas primaries.

Both Obama and Clinton are expected to battle through to April and possibly to their party’s August convention, yet McCain must raise enough money to support his organisation and remain in the public spotlight without benefit of a nomination contest.

One booster will be President George W Bush, who endorsed his fellow Republican last week and pledged to help McCain however he can, especially on the fundraising front.

Meanwhile, McCain also plans to travel to Europe and the Middle East for 10 days in mid-March as part of a congressional delegation, officials have disclosed.

McCain is staking his claim on the presidency based on his national security experience, and his foreign trip will play into that theme.

Israeli media said McCain planned a visit to the region on March 18. The Washington Post said the trip might include a stop in Iraq.

McCain has been a strong supporter of President Bush’s troop build-up in Iraq. He had criticised the way the war was being managed until the build-up took place last year.