The presumptive Democratic Party presidential nominee, Barack Obama,
has opted out of using public financing in his general election
campaign - a move criticized by the campaign of his Republican rival.
With
the decision announced Thursday, Obama will not take any public funds,
but is free to privately raise as much money as he can for the general
election campaign.
Candidates who take the $84 million in public
money cannot raise money from donors. Obama raised record amounts of
money during the primary election.
The campaign of the
presumptive Republican presidential candidate, John McCain, harshly
criticized the move, saying it shows that Obama is just "another
typical politician who will do and say whatever is most expedient."
The campaign faulted the Illinois senator for reversing a promise to
participate in the public financing system.
In a statement,
Obama said forgoing the public financing was not an easy decision, but
that the current public financing of presidential elections is
"broken," saying opponents have become "masters at gaming this broken
system."
Obama said McCain's campaign and the Republican
National Committee are fueled by contributions from Washington
lobbyists and special interest political action committees, which have
no limit on the amount of money they can raise for advertisements not
controlled by campaigns.
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