Remember how Daschle could have been debating Thune in South Dakota last week but decided to raise yet more money for his campaign by dashing off to the Hamptons and to Mississippi for a trial lawyer fundraiser? Now The New York Times has more on Daschle's Hamptons swing in an article entitled "The Democrats' A.T.M.":
SAG HARBOR — ASSEMBLED for cocktails at an elegant white house on Ferry Road was something of a Hamptons A-list, featuring dozens of the well-known regulars at Long Island's most exclusive summertime gatherings. Sprinkled in with these affluent second home-owners were a number of other faces that, while familiar, were assuredly not local: the guest of honor was Senator Tom Daschle of South Dakota, and also on hand were his New Jersey colleague, Jon Corzine, and the former presidential candidate Wesley Clark of Arkansas.But just because these prominent Democrats were mere visitors to Long Island didn't stop them from feeling right at home. After about an hour of cocktails and a short but memorable performance of dueling poetry by the husband-and-wife actors Eli Wallach and Anne Jackson, Mr. Daschle got up on the back patio to speak to the attendees.
"I have wonderful friends, all of you," said Mr. Daschle, who is the Senate minority leader and faces a tough race for re-election this year. "The good news is that we have all of the money we need to win this election. The bad news is there's about $1 million still in supporters' pockets that needs to come out. You all have moved us along by reaching into your pockets tonight."
Gail Furman, a child psychologist and Democratic activist who played host to the Daschle event, said the senator collected more than $100,000 that evening. But in an election year in which Democratic fund-raising has reached unprecedented levels, the party was hardly a special occasion. The event was one of a species that now abounds on the Hamptons' summertime social agenda: the Democratic fund-raiser.
The Hamptons in the summer have long been a Democratic Party candy store, where leisure time and a more casual party atmosphere, and perhaps a gin and tonic after a day in the sun, converge to relax wealthy donors' grip on their pocketbooks. On any given weekend this summer, the area is likely to play host to multiple Democratic fund-raising events, often at competing times and in close geographic proximity. Many politicians and well-heeled donors worked the Hamptons into their schedules after the Democratic National Convention, making South Fork pit stops on their way from Boston. Messrs. Daschle, Corzine and Clark were in this group.
I bet that 0.01% of South Dakotans have any idea how much time Daschle spends in the Hamptons or what that says about his candidacy.
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