2012 Democratic Convention Skirts Obama Money Pledge

The donation policy of the Democratic National Convention is in direct conflict with President Barack Obama’s pledge to keep corporate dollars out of his campaign, according to DailyCaller.com.

The convention’s host committee has as much as $15 million in its coffers so far, courtesy of a single fundraiser, Duke Energy CEO Jim Rogers, who is gathering support for the 2012 convention in Charlotte, N.C.

Convention organizers are getting around Obama’s policy by earmarking corporate money for marketing the city of Charlotte, which will see 35,000 visitors for the convention, the Caller reported.

“For the first time ever, at the president’s insistence, the Democratic convention host committee will not accept any corporate cash or money from PACs or federal lobbyists,” DNC rep Brad Woodhouse told the Caller. “Neither the Obama campaign nor the DNC take PAC or federal lobbyist money. This president has done more to ring the influence of special interests out of the political process than any president or presidential candidate ever.”

A Republican Party official in North Carolina was blunt in his assessment of the situation.

“There was no fine print in Obama’s vow to not take any ‘corporate or PAC money,’” GOP Communications Director Rob Lockwood told the Caller. “It’s a yes-or-no issue, and the answer is yes, Obama and the Democrats are using corporate money for the convention. It is a violation of their pledge. The Democrats have consistently misled the public on this issue, and it’s time for them to tell the truth.”