By DAVID HERBERT
Barack Obama raised more than $3.8 million through Dec. 15 to cover his transition expenses, his team announced today, though that figure barely puts him on pace to cover his bills.
The donor list doesn't feature many new high-profile names, and that's probably how the transition team would like it. Obama's initial transition fundraising relied on deep-pocketed supporters; as of Nov. 15, just 8 percent of transition boosters gave less than $200 and the average donation was $659. But Obama has diversified his portfolio, recruiting tens of thousands of boosters since then and driving the average donation down to $70.62.
The number of contributors giving the $5,000 limit has dropped off sharply. Just 88 new donors maxed out from Nov. 15 to Dec. 15, compared to 131 boosters who gave the limit through Nov. 15. And the influx of small-time donors hasn't made up for that gap. Obama hauled in $2.6 million, or roughly $88,000 a day, from Nov. 15 to Dec. 15. That's down from his $1.17 million take, or about $106,000 a day, from Election Day to Nov. 15.
Still, if Obama can continue to fundraise at this level through the inauguration, he should be able to come close to pocketing the roughly $7 million he needs to pay his transition bills.
Some notable new donors:
Ned Lamont, 2006 Democratic Senate nominee in Connecticut -- $5,000
Dana Chasin, senior adviser at OMB Watch -- $5,000
Craig Newmark, founder of craigslist -- $1,000
Michael Diamond, Beastie Boys -- $504
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