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Bush to raise money for McCain
23/05/2008 20:28 - (SA)
Washington - President George W Bush starts raising money for John McCain's campaign next week, but the three fundraisers are closed, so there will be no news cameras photographing the outgoing and incoming Republican party leaders and no reporters observing their joint appearances.
The White House announced on Friday that Bush will be the main attraction at three McCain events next week - in Phoenix, Salt Lake City and Park City, Utah. In addition to building up the McCain campaign account, the fundraisers will also benefit the national Republican Party, White House spokesperson Tony Fratto said.
All are being held in private residences, and McCain was expected to attend all of them, Fratto said. During the Bush presidency, fundraisers in private homes have almost always been held out of view of the public and the press, and Fratto said it would be no different this time. Former President Bill Clinton sometimes allowed the press into such fundraising settings.
Bush's low approval ratings have raised questions about whether he will help or hurt McCain, especially as the Democratic candidates have argued that a McCain administration would amount to a third Bush term. In the latest Associated Press-Ipsos poll last month, 28% approved of the job Bush is doing, his lowest rating ever in the survey.
Bush and McCain have not been together since March 5, when the president officially announced his endorsement of the likely Republican nominee in the White House's Rose Garden. Officials have declined to elaborate on how much they might campaign together, either to raise money or do traditional campaign rallies.
Bush has headlined numerous fundraisers for the Republican National Committee this election cycle, starting last year. That money will certainly be used in large part to boost McCain's campaign. But the events next week are the first involving Bush that directly funnel cash into McCain's campaign.
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