Why first quarter fundraising was important

Now don't get me wrong, I try to use the phrase "domino effect" as less often as possible, considering that it helped justify two misguided wars.  But when it comes to campaigning, raising a lot of money early on shows that you are viable in the long run, which encourages a sudden flood of larger donors to support your candidacy.

Most large donors want a winner.  Why would they support candidates like Chris Dodd or Tommy Thompson if they know that in the long run there will be no payoff?

In the case of Barack Obama, he knows that his $25 million raised in the first quarter, which matched Hillary Clinton, sends a strong signal to the Democratic establishment that he is capable of beating the former First Lady.  And now Democratic Party big-whigs in Iowa are paying attention:

"He was the newcomer, he was the outsider, and this shows he's aserious candidate," said Ron Parker, a Democratic strategist in Iowa,home of the nation's first nominating caucuses. "It shows he can do alot more than draw big crowds."

Then again, so-called pundits like to fire back and say that many previous presidential nominees were trailing at this point early in the race.  But keep in mind that 2008 might be a whole new ballgame.  You can't compete with just $3 million.