The Captains Spyglass: Clinton Eclipses Obama, Giuliani, Romney in Wall Street Money

Wednesday, October 17, 2007

Clinton Eclipses Obama, Giuliani, Romney in Wall Street Money

By Kristin Jensen and Julianna Goldman

Oct. 17 (Bloomberg) -- Hillary Clinton raised more money on Wall Street last quarter than Barack Obama, Rudy Giuliani and Mitt Romney combined.

Clinton beat Democratic presidential rival Obama in donations from employees of the top 10 underwriters of U.S. stock offerings, a reversal from previous quarters. The New York senator brought in $748,896 from the firms in July through September, compared with $177,456 for Obama, an Illinois senator.

The former first lady ran even further ahead of top Republicans, led by Giuliani, who brought in $149,925, and Romney, who raised $133,875, federal regulatory filings show.

Clinton's lead in public opinion polls and disciplined campaign is persuading Wall Street to invest in her, said Rogan Kersh, associate dean of New York University's Wagner School of Public Service. ``The reason they call it the smart money is because in the end they bet on the horse that wins,'' Kersh said.

Because of Clinton's strong fundraising, she and Obama widened their advantage in Wall Street cash, bringing in three times as much as the top two Republicans. In the second quarter, she and Obama raised almost twice as much as the top two Republicans -- Giuliani and Arizona Senator John McCain.

Campaign Performance

Clinton supporters say raising money became easier in recent months as she showed she can run a largely mistake-free campaign. Her debate performances and surge in the polls also helped, they said.

``The way she's campaigned has encouraged those who were on the sidelines to come forward and to make the commitment,'' said Clinton fundraiser Blair Effron, 45, co-founder of the New York financial advisory firm Centerview Partners and a former vice chairman at Zurich-based UBS AG, Europe's biggest bank.

Clinton's biggest third-quarter take came from Morgan Stanley, the world's second-largest securities firm. Chairman and Chief Executive Officer John Mack held an event for Clinton, 59, in July, helping bring her total donations from employees of the New York-based company to $210,970 in the quarter. Mack, 62, declined to comment yesterday through a spokeswoman.

The figures are based on employers listed by donors in reports filed with the U.S. Federal Election Commission this week; in some cases, the names are missing or incomplete.

Republicans

Once again during the quarter, the Democratic candidates as a group beat Republicans on Wall Street, bringing in $1.03 million from the top 10 stock underwriters compared with $437,442 for the Republicans.

Other Republicans were well behind Giuliani, the former New York mayor, and Romney, a former Massachusetts governor and founder of the Boston-based investment firm Bain Capital LLC. Former Tennessee Senator Fred Thompson, who joined the race last month, raised $81,950; McCain got $55,102.

Clinton's and Obama's take on Wall Street represents a switch from the second quarter, when Obama, 46, raised $739,579 and Clinton followed with $424,545. The top Republican recipients, Giuliani, 63, and McCain, 71, each received a little more than $330,000 from the same group of top banks in that quarter.

``You're seeing a market correction,'' said Dan Gerstein, an independent Democratic strategist based in New York. ``The promise of Obama was sort of like the tech start-up that got people very excited early on, but he really hasn't delivered the steak with the sizzle.''

Overall, Clinton raised $23.7 million for the primary elections in the third quarter; Obama brought in $20 million.

Donors

Obama's campaign focused on his support among a wider group of donors. For the year, he has received donations from 365,000 different people, his campaign said. The Clinton campaign has only released donors for two of its three quarters, for a total topping 160,000.

Obama campaign spokesman Bill Burton yesterday pointed to grassroots support and said ``the smart money out there is on changing our country.''

Democratic strategist Steve McMahon said that while Wall Street ``behaves like a futures market,'' Obama still has a good shot at the nomination. ``Barack's future is going to be determined not on Wall Street, but on Main Street -- in small towns all across Iowa and New Hampshire and if he wins there, Wall Street doesn't matter,'' said McMahon, who isn't aligned with any campaign.

Private Equity

Employees at the top 10 hedge funds and private-equity firms, whose tax rates are under assault from lawmakers including Obama and Clinton, didn't give nearly as much to White House hopefuls. The leader in both groups was Christopher Dodd of Connecticut, a Democratic presidential candidate who is also chairman of the Senate Banking Committee.

Dodd, 63, took in $78,900 from the top 10 private-equity companies and top 10 hedge funds, compared with $50,573 for Clinton, the only rival to come close. The top Republican to raise money from private-equity firms was Romney, 60, with $13,500.

Dodd's Senate job also helped him raise more from top banks than former North Carolina Senator John Edwards, 54, who ranks third in national polls of Democratic presidential candidates. Edwards collected just $23,625 from the banks in the third quarter, compared with $54,150 for Dodd.

To contact the reporters on this story: Kristin Jensen in Washington at kjensen@bloomberg.net ; Julianna Goldman in Washington at jgoldman6@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: October 17, 2007 00:03 EDT