Filmmaker challenges 2008 Dem hopefuls

Moore thrust Democratic White House hopefuls into the spotlight after the New England pre-screening of his movie “SiCKO” by listing the campaign contributions they’ve accepted from the private, for-profit health-care industry.

New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton topped the list with more than $800,000 in the first quarter of this year, followed by Illinois Sen. Barack Obama with more than $500,000 and former Sen. John Edwards with more than $200,000.

Nope. Obama’s not taking money from PAC’s or Lobbyists. If you check out Open Secrets’ break down by sector, it does show about $500,000, but it doesn’t differentiate between insurance companies and providers or individuals who work in either field.

You have to list your employer when you donate. I would hate for my employer to catch flak for my contributions. The truth is, Obama is rejecting money from lobbyists (which you’ll see listed next to lawyers on Open Secrets), PACS, or companies of any kind. He’s only accepting individual contributions. So, for that matter, is John Edwards. Thus the contributions listed here could not have come from the industries themselves, but from individuals working in those industries, of which I recall the film focusing on a few.