Obama mines a Republican stronghold
On the Balboa Bay Club's wall of its most famous guests, there are photos of Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, Gerald Ford and, of course, the Duke.
There are no Democratic politicians. Securely tucked behind the Orange Curtain, Newport Beach is Republican-held territory.
But Barack Obama may be hoping to change that.
On Sunday, the Democratic Illinois senator brought his campaign to the center of Republican power and did what he has done better than any other presidential candidate -- raise money.
Obama would leave with $1.2 million, an organizer estimated. With this infusion, he may exceed the amount GOP candidate John McCain has raised in Orange County.
"It is the hot ticket in town," said Santa Ana lawyer Wylie A. Aitken, one of the state's leading Democratic fundraisers.
Aitken, who represents plaintiffs who sue corporations, was on the host committee for Sunday's event, as were lawyers Frank Barbaro, chairman of the Orange County Democratic Party; and Leigh Steinberg, who represents sports figures.
Obama has drawn attention for his success with donors who contribute in amounts less than $200. Through May, he had raised $136 million of his $287-million total that way. But small donors were not his target Sunday.
About 40 contributors gave the legal maximum of $28,500 each to the national Democratic Party. They and 225 others each gave the maximum $2,300 allowed to Obama.
Donors included a few dozen Iranian Americans, who chipped in at least $200,000, Obama's aides said.
Jerry Howard, 63, is a Republican who has never voted for a Democrat. Nor had he ever given money to Democrats -- until he wrote a $28,500 check to the Democratic National Committee. That gained him the privilege of meeting Obama at the VIP reception, on a patio overlooking the harbor where yachts the size of small houses are moored. Obama donor and pharmaceutical company founder Milan Panic had his 125-foot yacht tied up a few dozen feet away.
Howard, a retired owner of a hotel design company, said, "I was shocked they were going to have a fundraiser in Orange County, the heart of Republican country." It's not that Howard dislikes McCain. But he said he was "astonished" at the state of the economy, and places much of the blame on Republicans. He is not certain he will vote for Obama. But encouraged by his wife, Deborah, he is leaning that way.
"At least he is something different," Howard said.
