Money talks, Obama walks

Barack Obama is marginally in front of John McCain in the polls, but it may be another statistical measure that causes concern for the Republican. The Democrat is far ahead in the money stakes. Hillary Clinton couldn't match Obama in the Democratic contest. Her campaign sunk into debt and, as her website suggests, the desperate math of money - not only the math of pledged delegates - threatens to scupper her fading hopes.

Just as Clinton failed to keep up with Obama's fundraising machine, so too does McCain risk being outstripped. In April alone, Obama raised $32 million, over $9 million of which is set aside for the general election. McCain, in contrast, raised only $18 million, with no money set aside for the general action.

Joshua Green of The Atlantic probes in detail the unprecedented success of Obama's fundraising, which has depended in large part on the support, savvy and means of Silicon Valley's high-tech elite. Bay Area expertise pushed the Obama campaign towards a novel model of fundraising, harnessing the growing power and influence of online social networks. A visit to the candidate's site - My.BarackObama.com - shows the extent to which the Obama campaign has embraced new technologies and modes of network-building. Can the elder statesman McCain dream of catching up?