Rival Camps Plan Inevitable Merger
Clinton, Obama Sup****ters Discuss Combined Effort to Win in November
By Matthew Mosk and Chris Cillizza
Wa****ngton Post Staff Writers
Sunday, May 18, 2008; A01
Top fundraisers for Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama have
begun private talks aimed at merging the two candidates' teams, not
waiting for the Democratic nominating process to end before they start
preparations for a hard-fought fall campaign.
Despite Obama's apparently insurmountable lead in delegates needed to
claim the nomination, aides to both candidates are resigned to the
idea that the Democratic contest will continue at least through June
3, when Montana and South Dakota will cast the final votes of the
primary season.
But in small gatherings around Wa****ngton and in planning sessions for
party unity events in New York and Boston in coming weeks, fundraisers
and surrogates from both camps are discussing how they can put aside
the vitriol of the past 18 months and move forward to ensure that the
eventual nominee has the resources to defeat Sen. John McCain (R-
Ariz.) in November.
Mark Aronchick, a Philadelphia lawyer who has raised more than $1
million for Clinton's bid, said that while her sup****ters have not
given up on their candidate, they recognize the need to start
preparing for the general election.
"Only if we do this right, and see this through in the right way, will
there be a chance for a full, rapid and largely complete unification
of the party," Aronchick said.
Aronchick was one of about 35 Clinton and Obama insiders who attended
a dinner last week in Wa****ngton aimed at what he characterized as
helping the two sides "grope towards unity."
The gathering, held at the Ritz-Carlton residence of Jim Johnson and
Maxine Isaacs, was a fundraiser for the Democratic National Committee
at which former Treasury secretary Robert Rubin was honored. But the
guests were well aware of the symbolism as they sipped cocktails and
admired the views of the Potomac River and the Wa****ngton Monument.
The event honoring a prominent Clinton sup****ter was held at the home
of an Obama backer and co-hosted by another, former senator Thomas A.
Daschle (S.D.).
"The people there had all picked sides," one attendee said. "There was
a sense that there is an obligation to lead by example."
While there was little outright talk of how the primary campaign would
end, guests confirmed that DNC Chairman Howard Dean set the tone with
a speech in which he emphasized that despite the protracted nomination
fight, he is already instituting a plan to combat McCain.
The message was clear, according to one attendee, who said, "You don't
go anywhere anymore where there isn't a sense that this is over and
this is about how people behave over the next month."
Even with the work in top levels of the party to broker a detente
between Obama and Clinton donors, both sides acknowledge there is much
still to be done.
Top fundraisers have invested not only their time and money but also
their emotions in the primary battle. Major financial backers say the
tensions have been particularly acute in recent weeks as frustrations
have mounted in both camps.
Aronchick said that in his own discussions, he emphasized the need for
the senator from Illinois to stop describing Clinton and her backers
as representing the politics of the past.
"They need to understand how corrosive that has been among her
sup****ters," Aronchick said. "For this to work, they need to correct
any impression that he thinks we represent the old ways of doing
things or Wa****ngton Beltway ways of doing things."
One top fundraiser for Obama, a veteran of several presidential
campaigns who spoke about the private discussions on the condition of
anonymity, said there are sensitivities among many of Obama's
sup****ters, as well. The fundraiser said there is a high level of
resentment that Clinton has continued to campaign, even though her
chances of securing the nomination are remote. Many are unhappy about
the idea of having to make room for members of Clinton's finance team,
who had "picked the wrong candidate."
"There are people who are thinking, 'Hey, my guy won. Now I have to
share the trophy?' " the Obama fundraiser said. "That's something we
have to overcome."
Kirk Dornbush, a member of the Obama national finance team in Georgia,
said that while there is no formal effort by the Obama campaign to
recruit Clinton counterparts, "many of us have friend****ps with
Clinton donors that predate the 2008 campaign and will last long after
this race is over. Given this reality, it should not be surprising
that we have received phone calls in the last few weeks" from
individuals interested in crossing over.
Another major Obama fundraiser, granted anonymity to speak candidly,
said that while no organized recruitment campaign was underway, "we
have picked off some local people and are reaching out to the Clinton
people we know individually."
That outreach has been complicated by leading voices in the Clinton
campaign having made clear that any defection at this point would be
regarded as a betrayal of the former first couple. "Some [Clinton]
people have said, 'If you publicly defect, that's the end of our
relation****p,' " said the Obama fundraiser. "Like, if we live to be
170, we're never going to speak to each other again."
Clinton sup****ters interviewed for this article all said they think
that the senator from New York remains a viable candidate. But several
also said they see the wisdom of beginning the conversation about
fundraising for the general election.
"We're all thinking about November," said Robert Zimmerman, a New York
public relations expert who is a top Clinton fundraiser. "We are
starting a dialogue together. I've made it clear [Obama backers] will
be welcome to come on board. They've said the same to me."
Zimmerman, who is also a Democratic National Committeeman, said Dean
has been a central figure in starting to bring the two camps together.
Dean is organizing a May 31 fundraiser in Manhattan honoring Al Gore.
The event is being chaired by Orin Kramer, one of Obama's top
fundraisers, and by Maureen White, a longtime party fundraiser who has
been assisting Clinton.
Last week, the Democratic National Committee announced that both
campaigns had signed a "joint fundraising agreement" creating a fund
in which donations to each candidate could be pooled with
contributions to the party and then used during the general election.
Clinton's New England finance chairman, Steve Grossman, is also co-
chairing an event with two top New England fundraisers for Obama, Alan
Solomont and Barry White. The June 12 event in Boston is in honor of
Massachusetts Sen. John F. Kerry's brother, Cameron Kerry, and will
raise money for the National Jewish Democratic Council, but the
invitation list includes top bundlers for both Clinton and Obama.
In addition to the fledgling attempts to merge the fundraising
operations of Obama and Clinton, there is growing talk that the best
-- and perhaps only -- way to truly mend the rift is for Obama to pick
a top Clinton surrogate as his vice presidential nominee.
"There's gale-force pressure for Obama to choose a Clinton loyalist as
a running mate to heal the party but avoid putting her and her
formidable baggage on the ticket," said one Obama ally in Wa****ngton.
"You hear the names [Ohio Gov. Ted] Strickland, [Indiana Sen. Evan]
Bayh, and [retired general] Wes Clark almost constantly, and it's no
secret that Jim Johnson and Tom Daschle are purveyors of that wisdom."
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