Billionaire food-tough wiper...

Jeb Bush’s 'smooth' money machine

He's rarely taken more than a day or two off from the money chase.

By Anna Palmer and Tarini Parti

Jeb Bush’s laser focus on fundraising has sent him crisscrossing the country over the past six months to headline roughly 70 money events as he tries to smash existing presidential campaign records.

Rarely taking off more than a day or two off the money chase, Bush has held fundraisers in at least 15 different states and Puerto Rico, with event tickets ranging from $25 to $100,000 per person. Not surprisingly, he has raked in millions from swings through New York, California and Washington, D.C., but he’s also done at least 10 events in his home state of Florida and five in Texas, where he can tap into the donor network created by his father and brother, former Presidents George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush.

The full-court press is a key component of his campaign strategy to shut out potential rivals from megadonors, cement himself as the Republican establishment candidate and create the most ambitious presidential fundraising operation in history — all before even announcing his White House bid.

During the months Bush considered jumping into the race, the former Florida governor built out an internal fundraising unit, launched three fundraising vehicles — a leadership political action committee, super PAC and nonprofit — and maintained an aggressive fundraising schedule to fill the campaign coffers of his super PAC, Right to Rise. It is projected by campaign insiders to raise around $100 million by month’s end.

“He’s been, I think, very thoughtful about it and relentless,” said Ron Kaufman, a former senior adviser to Mitt Romney’s 2012 campaign of Bush’s fundraising strategy. “And when you are running a marathon, you better be. Jeb has an advantage since he was a young man being involved in the marathon even though he wasn’t the lead runner, so to speak. He understands it well.”

Bush’s donor pitch in the early days was simple: write the biggest checks you can and create a massive pile of cash to scare away other candidates.

That strategy did not work out, and the GOP field continues to grow. Bush also stumbled early over his position on the Iraq war — surprising donors who say he had handled that question well at fundraisers. He recently shook up his campaign staff following middling poll results in early primary and caucus states. Despite the setbacks, the money kept flowing at a slower pace.

Still, people familiar with Bush’s fundraising said his Right to Rise super PAC had raised close to $90 million by spring, putting it on a pace to crush existing records. For example, Mitt Romney raised just over $20 million during the first half of 2011, much lower than the $50 million his strategists had hoped to pull in. And President Barack Obama raised $86 million when he ran for reelection. Hillary Clinton, who has focused on just raising primary money in $2,700 increments for her 2016 bid, is expected to report a significantly smaller haul.

It also reflects Bush’s embrace of the super PAC era, more so than any other candidate. His team has routinely asked megadonors for seven-figure contributions, and Bush’s decision to wait until June to announce his bid was largely so he could raise money for his super PAC, which he cannot do under campaign finance laws after he becomes an official candidate.

He’s also been aided by the alumni of the campaigns and administrations of his brother and father who’ve attended major events in Texas to help him lure donors. Alumni have also hosted events for Jeb Bush, including California private equity mogul Brad Freeman, former Ambassadors Charles Swindells and John Rood, and lobbyist Lanny Griffith. Jeb Bush’s sons — George P. Bush and Jeb Bush, Jr. – have been raising money from younger Republicans.

When he’s not fundraising for himself, Bush has been mingling with GOP donors in states like Iowa, New Hampshire and Nevada raising money for down-ballot candidates and state party committees. In the past six months, he has attended fundraisers benefiting Reps. Frank Guinta and David Young, Sens. Chuck Grassley and David Vitter, the Tennessee Republican Party, Clark County Republican Party and Republican State Leadership Committee.

After months of taking in unlimited super PAC donations, he’s now turning his attention to fundraising for his campaign committee. Bush has big money events slated this week in New York and Washington. The D.C. event is expected to raise at least $500,000, and the New York event about $1 million. He’s offered incentives to bundlers to raise $27,000 in the first 15 days of his campaign. The payoff: a trip to the Bush compound in Kennebunkport, Maine.

“As he is flipping the switch, so are we,” said David Beightol, a former aide to President George H.W. Bush. “We’ve met our goal, and now it’s time to move to the next phase.”

Despite Bush’s early missteps, the money front has been more stable.

“The fundraising operation has been largely flawless, not to say that everybody they want to sign up has signed up,” said one veteran Republican strategist. “It’s the no drama division of the campaign.”

Bush’s ability to connect, sharing his family narrative and his own work in the government and private sectors, has allowed him to quickly shore up support.

“He builds relationships, remembers names and like his father is a sender of personal handwritten notes,” said Richard Cullen, chairman of McGuireWoods, who was appointed a U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia by President George H.W. Bush.

“Let me tell you getting a personal follow up from a top-tier candidate goes a very long way in forging a bond. When we had him to a super PAC event in Richmond he combined star power with a relaxed, comfortable manner. He was very approachable and seemed interested in all of us. My friends were like, ‘Where do we send a check?’”

Just days after announcing he was thinking of running, Bush headed to Washington to court D.C. power brokers. The inside-the-Beltway crowd isn’t known as a huge money source, but keeping the Washington echo chamber at bay is an important step for him to solidify national support.

“D.C. is not principally a money market. This is not New York, San Francisco or Miami,” said one veteran Republican donor and Bush supporter. “What D.C. is, it is the most significant echo chamber in the country … There is constant communications that goes between folks in this town and association members, executives and clients across the country.”

Bush’s Wall Street donors say his experience in the financial sector helped him raise money early this year as soon as the former Florida governor formed his super PAC. He’d consulted for Lehman Brothers and later Barclays Capital. And the family name goes back at least to 1900 on Wall Street and the founding of G.H. Walker & Co.

“He’d spent a lot of time in New York the last few years so people were ready for him when he signaled he would run,” said one big Bush donor at a large investment firm. “And he fits what people here want which is someone who is not terribly ideological but is a proven and effective leader.”

Another donor said that once Bush engaged with Wall Street titans like Henry Kravis, he quickly dispelled fears about his last name being an issue. “It became obvious to everyone that this was a different type of a guy completely prepared to be president. You put him in the room and people are like ‘Holy cow, this guy is smart.’”

Bush has remained potent with Wall Street donors, partly because of concerns about the rest of the Republican field. Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker and Florida Sen. Marco Rubio both have establishment support, but some worry that Walker lacks polish on the stump and Rubio is inexperienced. These factors tend to override concerns about Bush’s early mistakes.

“Everyone knows its very early days and stuff like the Iraq thing is going to happen,” the second donor said. “But he is going to be there at the end.”