This year’s early favorite appears to be Mitt Romney, donor sources confirmed to POLITICO, who has already lined up quiet commitments from more than a dozen top names, among them billionaire David Koch and his wife Julia, financier and former Goldman Sachs partner Lewis Eisenberg, New York Jets owner Woody Johnson and Ogilvy Government Relations Chairman Wayne Berman…
Some in the big donor class claim to welcome the tea party’s energy, but many are nevertheless nervously eyeing Palin, who posted big numbers this quarter with a surprisingly small number of maximum donations — a sign that she could be poised to, like GOP Senate nominees Sharron Angle in Nevada or Christine O’Donnell in Delaware, capture an internet cash wave that has largely favored Democrats so far.
“Most longstanding donors are worried about a candidate, or multiple candidates, coming forward who are too extreme,” said a major Republican donor with long ties to the party. “You’ve got a lot of people that don’t want to support the tea party movement.”
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