Obama's Greek shrine cost 5 million

[Gruzinit]

Unless you've been living under a rock, you've probably heard to media going on a tangent about the RNC spending $150,000 dollars on clothing for Sarah Palin. Besides ignoring the fact that McCain aides went on the shopping spree and that Palin was unaware of the costs because they were simply sent to her hotel room.

But it turns out that the Obama campaign spent 5.3 million on that styrofoam Greek Temple. Yes, 5.3 million for one night. Don't expect the media to complain, they'd probably have built it for him for free.

http://www.bizjournals.com/denver/stories/2008/10/13/daily43.html

DNC host committee raised $61M by Mark Harden

The Denver 2008 Convention Host Committee said Thursday that $60.9 million was raised to stage the Democratic National Convention — well over the $40 million the city originally promised to raise.

In a 1,400-page “Form 4” financial-disclosure report filed with the Federal Election Commission, the committee said $55 million was raised in cash contributions, $5.46 million from in-kind support, and about $500,000 from interest income and miscellaneous refunds.

The committee missed several early fundraising targets before the Aug. 25-28 DNC in Denver, but ultimately was able to reach and then surpass its initial $40 million goal despite a worsening economy.

Ultimately, more than the original commitment was needed because of the extra cost of moving the convention on its final night from Pepsi Center to Invesco Field at Mile High.

“When the convention was placed in our hands [in January 2007], I don’t know that we realized the magnitude of the task before us,” said Steve Farber, president and founding partner of Denver law firm Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck LLP and co-chairman for the host committee.

Farber personally raised millions for the committee, approaching many of his firm’s clients and various large corporations for sponsorships.

In an interview, he said the effort was hampered somewhat by the weakening economy, Denver’s shortage of Fortune 500 headquarters, and the distraction of a two-way race for the party’s nomination until several weeks before the DNC.

Yet, he added, “I always knew we would make it. It was supposed to be $40 million, but you just knew it was going to be closer to 50, and when it was all in, we ... raised closer to 60.”

The host committee said it received donations from more than 700 businesses and individuals, 79 percent of them from outside of Colorado.

In its FEC filing, the host committee said it incurred $53.67 million in operating expenses and spent $53.86 million.

Most of that money went to pay expenses of the Democratic National Convention Committee, the party organization that staged the DNC. Nine percent of the host committee’s money went to pay its own expenses, which included salaries, marketing and staging various events off the convention grounds.

Convention expenses paid by the committee included $14.1 million for construction costs, including the stage and lighting, at the Pepsi Center and $5.3 million at Invesco Field.

The group said it has $7.1 million on hand but still is receiving invoices from contractors. It plans to file an updated report with those expenditures later.

The host committee said it has donated laptop computers and leftover office supplies to the Denver Public Schools, T-shirts and water bottles to Denver’s Road Home, and certain other surplus items to the Food Bank of the Rockies and Bienvenidos Food Bank.

[jaime]

hypocrites    those columns are ridiculous.  what else is ridiculous is Ocra being considered as Ambassador to Britian.  that cross country trip of her pigging out w/her girlfriend Gail King really made me sick.  nothing but twinkies, pancakes, waffles, chocolate.....it was the most disgusting pigfest i've ever seen.  i suppose when she can't find all "her favorite things," she'll have them flown over by private jet, of course.   

$150K to dress Sarah Palin is nothing.  Her clothes came from Saks and Neiman Marcus.  What do they expect a VP, especially Sarah, to wear, Walmart clothes?  Then they'd complain about that.  Everyone else wears nice clothing and none of it comes from cheap stores.  I don't even think $150K is that much money for jackets, handbags, hoisery, undergarments, skirts, shirts, jewelry, shoes, make up, etc. 

I just saw a teaser on tv and they blame McCain for Sarah getting slammed.  I don't see what the purpose of putting her on Saturday Night Live was.  There have been a lot of reports this past week that Tina Fey hurt Sarah w/her impersonations.  When you make fun of someone like that, it doesn't help the person who is being made fun of.  Funnyman  Chevy Chase had the gall to say, "at least Lorne Green didn't give her any lines."  you know, he is mentally unbalanced.  one time I was waiting for my car and he was standing next to me.  He looked over at me and yelled in my face, "Hi."  I just turned away from him.  Something is mentally wrong w/him and he looks like $hit in person: skinny, white and pasty....probably on drugs.