MoveOn moving away from big bucks

by Mark Silva

MoveOn.org says it is moving away from big money.

The anti-war organization, backing the campaign of Democrat Barack Obama, still says it plans to spend $35 million this election cycle. But it also says it is shutting down a "527 committee it had formed during the 2004 cycle, its "Voter Fund. ''

Instead, MoveOn's Eli Pariser said today, the group will run all of its campaign activity out of a "small-donor'' political action committee. The group, claiming 3.2 million members, maintains it can raise big money with small checks.

In an election year in which Obama is eschewing both lobbyist donations and also public campaign financing in the fall campaign, and has gotten the Democratic National Committee to also swear off lobbyist checks, MoveOn claims to be building on a grassroots movement.

"The small-donor driven politics that built MoveOn and the progressive movement has helped to drive Barack Obama's candidacy," Eli Pariser, executive director of MoveOn.org, said in a statement today. "We've always believed this new kind of politics can change our country and end the gridlock in DC. And now is the time to let the voices of ordinary Americans be heard in this election."

The group also maintains that only 10 percent of the $122 million that it has raised since 1998 arrived in donations of larger than $5,000.

Now, they're encouraging bake sales.

Pariser is sharing his letter with members:

"Dear MoveOn Member,
For almost ten years, we've worked together to change American politics. Millions of us have collaborated to build a new progressive moment, catalyzed by the Internet and motivated by our belief that the country we love deserves better.
Now, in Barack Obama, we have a Presidential candidate who has based his campaign on precisely that kind of new politics--a people-driven politics focused on the outside-of-the-beltway consensus around Iraq, climate change, and health care, not the gridlock in Washington.
Using a lot of the tools and techniques developed by the progressive movement--as well as a visionary approach to leadership--Obama's brought millions of new people into the process. And, following in the footsteps of Howard Dean, ActBlue, and other innovators, he's adopted a new way of funding a campaign--relying on a donor base of millions rather than contributions by lobbyists and special interests.
It's a very exciting moment. And so the time has come to answer an important question: should we make an all-in commitment, together, to this new politics?
While MoveOn Political Action has always been funded exclusively by small donors like you, we've held open the MoveOn.org Voter Fund--a separate "527" organization--which can raise money from big donors. We haven't actually taken any big-money checks since 2004, when MoveOn members matched big contributors to educate voters about George Bush's policies. But in light of the new politics offered by Barack Obama, I've come to believe it's time to close the 527 forever--and to challenge organizations on the right to do the same thing.
That means that we won't raise any money for our election work from foundations, unions, or even individuals who want to give over $5,000. It's an all-in commitment to the small-donor way of doing things. But the time is right to take the leap...
We've come a long way together in our journey toward a new people-driven politics for America. It's been a wonderful honor to be part of it. And this is just the beginning.
Thanks,
-Eli and the whole team''