Presidential fundraising race heats up

The field is getting crowded for the Democratic nomination for President. This weekend, Hillary Clinton and Bill Richardson announced they would join John Edwards, Barack Obama, Joe Biden, Christopher Dodd and others. There are more than seven serious candidates exploring or officially declared with three others like Al Gore, Wesley Clark, and John Kerry still silent.

It is not "vision" or "message" that will eventually separate these early candidates. It is fundraising. So, the race is on to hire the best fundraisers, get big name donors, secure fundraising endorsements, and ultimately attempt to raise $75 million before the end of this year.

Patrick Healy and Jeff Zeleny at The New York Times had an excellent front page story today on the head-to-head competition between Obama and Clinton. It paints a picture of the ground battle underway right now in the New York, Hollywood, Chicago and across the country.