Ken Foskett
Cox Washington Bureau
Friday, August 13, 1999

Washington -- Gov. George W. Bush of Texas swoops into Atlanta Aug. 27 for a pair of fund-raisers that will give many of his Georgia backers their first look at the GOP front-runner.

Amid the hoopla, the only sound Bush's rivals are likely to hear is the din of a fund-raising vacuum cleaner sucking up $1,000 contributions faster than any candidate in presidential history.

In Georgia, as in the rest of the country, Bush has shattered fund-raising records for a presidential candidate this early in the race. In the first six months of the year, Bush raised $606,223 in Georgia, almost twice what the other eight GOP candidates have raised combined.

In the past month, Bush has boosted his Georgia total to $750,000 --- the goal his Georgia fund-raisers had set for the entire year. Now, Bush may well end up with $1 million before the year is out.

To top it off, Bush has raised the money without setting foot in the state. Bush's upcoming trip to Georgia will be his first since he formed his presidential exploratory committee earlier this year.

"The money is just pouring in," said Eric Tanenblatt, Bush's state chairman. "There has never been a presidential campaign that has raised this much money in Georgia."

Nationally, Bush raised almost $37 million for the first half of the year, although he did not officially start until February. The amount broke all previous fund-raising records at this point in the election cycle.

After falling behind to Vice President Al Gore in the first quarter of the year, Bush outraised Gore almost 5-to-1 in the second quarter in Georgia, pushing him well head of the Tennessee Democrat for the year. In the first six months of the year, Gore raised $346,445 in Georgia.

To be sure, Bush is drawing on some powerful fund-raising allies to help him out, principally his father, former President Bush. Nearly all of the $513,659 that Bush raised in Georgia in the second quarter of the year came from a single fund-raising dinner featuring the former president on May 22.

"Governor Bush has an extensive set of connections that he's tapped into from his father," said attorney Keith Mason, Gore's state contact.

Mason said he was unconcerned about Bush's early lead in the money race, noting that the Gore campaign had only just begun to draw on the fund-raising contacts of the Democratic officeholders that have endorsed the vice president.

"We'll continue to see support grow for the vice president," he said.

Former New Jersey Sen. Bill Bradley, the only challenger to Gore on the Democratic side, raised $46,150 in Georgia, further evidence that the East Coast Democrat has yet to develop much of a financial base in the South.

Bush's GOP rivals, meanwhile, continue to struggle for cash. Elizabeth Dole was third overall in money for the first half of the year, raising $75,100. Dole was closely followed by Family Research Council President Gary Bauer, publisher Steve Forbes, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and former Education Secretary Lamar Alexander.

Ronald Blue, Bauer's national finance chairman, who lives in Atlanta, said a July 16 fund-raiser has pushed Bauer to close to $100,000 in Georgia, joking that the amount was "probably less than what George Bush has raised on West Paces Ferry," the monied street that winds through Buckhead.

"It's almost overwhelming how much money he has raised," Blue said of Bush. "He is just sucking up money."

In some instances, Bush is getting financial help from Georgians publicly supporting other candidates. At least two members of Dole's Georgia leadership team, for example, wrote $1,000 checks to Bush.

Joyce Carter Stevens, a former executive director of the state Republican Party, gave Bush $1,000 on June 17. The next day, Dole named Stevens to co-chair her Georgia leadership team, along with attorney Oscar Persons, who also contributed to Bush.

"I'm getting a lot of people who are giving to both campaigns," Persons said. "The consensus is that the two strongest candidates out there would be Bush and Dole."

Still, the rush to contribute to Bush is forcing candidates such as Dole to look outside the circle of usual political donors.

Mary O'Connor, Dole's finance chairwoman, has a background in charitable giving and nonprofit fund-raising. She's looking to people in those fields to support Dole, the former president of the Red Cross.

"We are reaching out beyond the traditional political fund-raising community," O'Connor said. Dole will appear at two fund-raising events in Georgia on Sept. 9 and 10.

In Georgia, Bush has adopted the same type of fund-raising strategy that has worked for him nationally. Aiding his national finance committee in Texas, Bush has a circle of more than 100 "Pioneers" who have each committed to help raise $100,000. In Georgia, Bush's finance committee is made up of people who pledge to raise at least $10,000 for the candidate. The committee now has close to 100 members, with new ones joining every week, Tanenblatt said. "People are really attracted to the campaign," Tanenblatt said. "If we can get to a million (dollars) that would be great. That would be historic."

THE GEORGIA MONEY STORY SO FAR
Candidate contributions through the end of June:
Gov. George W. Bush (R)......$606,223
Vice President Al Gore (D).. $346,445
Elizabeth Dole (R)............$75,100
Gary Bauer (R)................$67,833
Steve Forbes (R)..............$64,570
Sen. John McCain (R)..........$57,475
Lamar Alexander (R).......... $50,000
Bill Bradley (D)..............$46,150
Dan Quayle (R)................$39,164
Pat Buchanan (R)..............$12,525
Alan Keyes (R)................ $4,772