Even loyal Obama supporters are raising their eyebrows at the very pricey fundraising -- like that exclusive $35,800-per-person dinner in San Francisco -- planned as part of the President's April 20 visit to the Bay Area.
The April Western U.S. swing by the President, which includes a stop in Reno and Los Angeles as well as San Francisco, is part of Obama's 2012 re-election kickoff campaign. But also scheduled is what the White House promises will be a jobs and economy event in the Bay Area on April 20.
On April 21, Obama heads to Los Angeles.
Cafe Presse
One of the Cafe Press designs pumping Obama's 2012 reelection campaign
Obama supporters acknowledge that the $35,800 per person San Francisco Obama Victory Fund dinner may represent a new pricetag high for political fundraising. After all, loyal Dems thought the ceiling was reached last Oct. 21, when tickets to that Obama dinner in the Palo Alto home of Google executive Marissa Mayer hit an astonishing $30,800 per person.
Yes, "there's a little bit of sticker shock,'' one Dem told us this week. The explanation: $30,800 of that donation will go to the Democratic National Committee, with $5,000 going to the Obama campaign -- $2,500 for the primary and $2,500 for the general election.
Here's the details of the Obama fundraising schedule as we know them so far:
*On April 20, organizers are promising a "low dollar" event at Masonic Auditorium in San Francisco, with tickets priced at $25, $250, $1,000 and $2,500. The high end ticket, $2,500, gets a donor a spot in the first three rows of the venue -- along with a photo line shot, according to the emails we've seen.
*April 20th evening: Obama will star at a very exclusive dinner at the San Francisco home of Marc Benioff, chairman and CEO of salesforce.com. That will allow just 60 high end supporters to dine with the President; potential donors are being told that Obama will "go to each table and speak with everyone individually,'' with photographer in tow for that $35,800 check. ("Yes, you read that correctly,'' another astonished potential check-writer told us.)
*April 21st: Breakfast at 7:30 at St. Regis Hotel in Los Angeles for an estimated 120 people. Tickets are $5,000 or $10,000, and that top VIP price gets you a photo with the President.
And this is just the beginning for California's deep-pocketed donors: remember, it's still 19 months until the 2012 election.
Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/nov05election/detail?entry_id=86397#ixzz1IwnmffTz
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