Paul Ryan, Fundraising Powerhouse

I didn't know this about Ryan, and it says more about scaling the heights inside the Congress than anything else. Although the major corporate backing for the GOP ticket is a huge plus.

At the Los Angeles Times, "Paul Ryan runs well-oiled fundraising machine":

WASHINGTON — Rep. Paul D. Ryan has cultivated his "affable wonk" persona into an effective moneymaker, winning over CEOs and K Street lobbyists to build a fundraising machine that has boosted his standing on Capitol Hill and helped make him one of the GOP's most influential figures.

In 2002, the Wisconsin congressman established a so-called leadership PAC, a fund that allows him to raise money to give to other lawmakers, but the fund did little until 2006, when he began his rapid rise in the House Republican hierarchy. That year, Ryan's PAC distributed $322,000 to Republicans, a 607% increase in giving from the cycle before, according to the nonpartisan campaign finance group Center for Responsive Politics.

After the 2006 election, Ryan, who is now the GOP vice presidential candidate, became the top Republican on the House Budget Committee.

"Part of what you do when you're a member of Congress who has ambitions and wants to become committee chair is you start raising money and you start giving money to your colleagues," said Steve Northrup, a Republican healthcare lobbyist who has hosted several Ryan fundraisers.

"You can't divorce that from his personality and his smarts," Northrup added.

The high-profile post and the exposure it has brought has helped Ryan raise even more, which, in turn, has allowed him to cement ties to his congressional allies. In this election cycle, he has brought in $8.5 million to his campaign account and political action committee combined. Of that, Ryan still has more than $6 million in the bank, a notably high reserve compared with his congressional colleagues.

The PAC so far has given more than $539,000 to Republican candidates and lawmakers, a figure that ranks among the top 10 leadership PACs in contributions to federal candidates, alongside prolific congressional fundraisers Reps. Eric Cantor (R-Va.) and Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco).

"Even the most idealistic members of Congress realize that the way to power is to raise money and to spread it around to your colleagues," said David Donnelly, executive director of Public Campaign Action Fund, a campaign finance reform group. Ryan "certainly learned that early on."

Ryan has become one of the most requested fundraising surrogates for House Republicans. And he has invested in a multimillion-dollar direct mail campaign that has bolstered his name recognition and given his finance network a national scope.

RTWT.

VIDEO CREDIT: The Other McCain, "Paul Ryan in Roanoke, Virginia: ‘This is President Obama’s Imaginary Recovery’."