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 "I like Joe Biden very much, but it's time to line up for Hillary
and we are lining up," said Karin Birkeland, a top Democratic
bundler for President Barack Obama in 2012 who recently committed to
Clinton. "She has by far the best resume, she's ready, she's younger
and she's a woman."
Another Democratic bundler who raised $500,000 for Obama in 2012 and
who recently decided on Clinton, was blunter. "Joe Biden's ship has
passed," said the donor, who asked not be named due to his respect
for the vice president.
Biden's inner circle has been working vigorously to reach out to
undecided donors, according to sources close to the Draft Biden
Super PAC. A meeting with potential donors is set to occur after
Labor Day.
On Monday and Tuesday, Reuters interviewed 13 political activists
who are among the Democratic Party's top donors and bundlers. As
recently as February, when initially contacted by Reuters, seven of
them were undecided, though all have since thrown their support -
and fundraising machines - behind Clinton.
 Clinton's continued donor support comes as the controversy
surrounding her use when she was Obama's secretary of State of a
private email account, which operated outside the bounds of the
government's technology security, has deepened. The FBI is now
probing whether the system put classified information at risk.
Though Clinton, 67, remains the front runner, ahead of insurgent
Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont, her poll numbers have slipped.
The nominating contests start next February, ahead of the
presidential general election in November 2016.
Political pundits and consultants argue that a Biden run could
further complicate the picture for Clinton, providing an alternative
for the party’s establishment wing in the form of a tested statesman
who, at 72, many consider the Democratic Party's eminence grise.
But while all of those interviewed by Reuters expressed respect for
Biden, and said they felt deeply empathetic about the recent loss of
his son Beau, 46, to brain cancer, none indicated that a Biden run
would cause them to switch allegiances. What's more, Biden has never
been a politician known for his fundraising prowess - and many
experts predicted he would struggle at this late stage to build,
virtually from scratch, a fundraising machine, especially since
Clinton has had so much of the money locked up since last winter.
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Even so, a billionaire, or wealthy mega donor, could pour money into
a Super PAC, solving Biden's fundraising weakness overnight. Since
2010, when the Supreme Court made a decision allowing outside
spending groups, known as Super PACs, to accept unfettered sums, a
wealthy donor can single-handedly propel a candidacy for as long as
he or she is willing to fund it.
"Joe Biden - he's one of the most beloved political figures in
America, on both sides of the aisle," said John Morgan, a Lake Mary,
Florida, lawyer who raised $1.7 million for Obama in 2012 and who,
in May, raised $1 million for Clinton. "I don't think he can beat
her. But he can make her better. He can mettle-test her."
Federal campaign finance filings reveal that Clinton's fundraising
efforts have brought in nearly $70 million so far, putting her at
second place in the presidential money race behind Republican Jeb
Bush, who has raked in a record-setting $120 million.
About $20 million of Clinton's money comes from PACs affiliated with
her campaign, including a Super PAC that has received $1 million
contributions from such luminaries as investor George Soros,
Hollywood filmmaker Steven Spielberg and philanthropist and finance
executive Herbert Sandler.
So far, no mega donor has emerged to back Biden, though none of the
donors thought that was a reason for him to sit out the race.
"At this point, what else is his life for?" said Morgan. "What else
can Joe Biden do? He can run for Beau."
(Reporting by Caren Bohan; Editing by Leslie Adler)
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reserved.]
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