Capital Briefs: Clinton Fares Poorly with Bank, Wall St. Donors

Commercial and investment banks have given far more money to Republican presidential candidates than to the Clinton campaign.

A survey released Tuesday by the Center for Responsive Politics shows that securities firms gave $1.24 million to the campaigns of five Republican challengers - former Tennessee Gov. Lamar Alexander, columnist Pat Buchanan, and Sens. Bob Dole, Phil Gramm, and Richard Lugar - and only $332,000 to President Clinton between Jan. 1 and Sept. 30, 1995.

Commercial banks gave $631,000 to the five Republicans, almost eight times the $81,000 contributed to President Clinton, while thrifts gave $47,700 to the Republicans and $4,700 to Mr. Clinton.

Investment banks' top beneficiary - with $588,000 - was Sen. Dole. Among the top five overall contributors to the Dole campaign are PaineWebber and Bear, Stearns & Co.

The financial sector also favored Mr. Alexander. Commercial banks gave his campaign $212,000, more than they did to any other candidate, and securities firms gave him $491,000. Much of this was from his home state: Tennessee-based securities firm J.C. Bradford & Co. gave $105,000 to the Alexander campaign, and First Tennessee Bank gave $62,000.

The top Clinton contributor from commercial or investment banking was Goldman, Sachs & Co., which gave $18,000. But Goldman Sachs gave $28,000 to Sen. Dole's campaign, $13,500 to Sen. Gramm's, and $8,000 to Sen. Lugar's.

Mr. Buchanan received no money from banks or thrifts, and only $5,400 from securities firms. - John Duchemin, Medill News Service

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