U.S. soldiers
have donated more presidential campaign money to Democrat
Barack Obama than to Republican John McCain, a reversal of
previous campaigns in which military donations tended
to favor GOP White House hopefuls, a nonpartisan group
reported.
Troops serving
abroad have given nearly six times as much money to
Obama's presidential campaign as they have to McCain's, the
Center for Responsive Politics said Thursday.
The results also
are striking because they favored Obama, who never has
served in the military. McCain meanwhile, is a decorated war
veteran who spent nearly five years as a prisoner of
war in Vietnam. The Arizona senator graduated from the
U.S. Naval Academy and had a 22-year career as a naval
aviator.
Obama has opposed
the war in Iraq and says he would withdraw combat
troops within 16 months. McCain has been a steadfast
supporter of the war, saying he would withdraw the
troops only when conditions on the ground warrant it.
''Obama will work
tirelessly to uphold this nation's sacred trust with
its veterans, to ensure they are not forgotten after they
return home and he will provide our troops with the
leadership they deserve, as well as the support they
and their families need,'' Obama spokesman Nick Shapiro
said.
McCain's campaign
played down the significance of the donations.
''John McCain has
been endorsed by more retired admirals and generals
than Barack Obama has military donors,'' McCain spokesman
Michael Goldfarb said in a statement.
''We feel
confident that many U.S. troops stationed overseas will
support John McCain in the election this fall, but we
suspect most are too busy doing the important work of
defending this country than to make political
contributions,'' Goldfarb said.
The report
tracked donations of $200 or more. It found that 859 members
of the military donated a total of $335,536 to Obama. McCain
received $280,513 from 558 military donors.
Among soldiers
serving overseas at the time of their donations, 134 gave
a total of $60,642 to Obama while 26 gave a total of $10,665
to McCain. (AP)
