News of the second quarter reporting period for campaign fundraising is coming out, and the big winner is Senator Barack Obama of Illinois. He's raised over $32 million in the quarter just ended, an all-time record - with $31 million of it available to use in the primaries, another all-time record.

Perhaps even more important for Obama going forward, he has attracted over 250,000 individual donors, most of whom gave small amounts. The significance of this becomes clear when we remember the limit for individuals is $2300 for the primaries and another $2300 for the general election. Once someone has "maxxed out," they can't give you any more money, period. But the thousands of little donors who gave smaller amounts can be contacted again and again until they do reach the limit. Typically, a good percentage of previous donors will give again and again, so it is a ready-made cash machine for the candidate who attracts these smaller givers.

Senator Hillary Clinton's total of around $27 million is nothing to sneeze at, either, of course, but only around $18 million can be used for the primaries, with the rest reserved for the general election if she wins the nomination. This means many of her donors gave the maximum already, and she will depend more heavily on new fundraising in the future.

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The fact that so many of her supporters were willing to pony up for the general already, though, does demonstrate a level of confidence in her ultimate success - a confidence buttressed by her consistent poll numbers.

Former Senator John Edwards indicates he drew "almost all" of his $9 million goal for the quarter, which isn't half bad in historical comparison, but leaves him clearly off the first tier with Democratic donors. His take fell off more than 25% from the 1st quarter, and his poll numbers have subsided to their earlier low-to-mid-teen levels after a brief sympathy bounce on the news of his wife's cancer recurring.

New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson apparently raised about $7 million, so it is hard to claim he is on a lower tier than Edwards. The difference is that Richardson is maintaining or slightly increasing his support as Edwards slips, even though many observers consider his bid to really be for Vice President.

So, it's "advantage Obama" in the money race for now, with a strong foundation for continued success in the coming quarters. Money isn't everything, of course. Many early leaders in fundraising failed to capture the prize: Rockefeller in '64, Muskie in '72, Hart in '88, and Gramm in '96 come immediately to mind. But while it may not be everything, it's much easier to run a competitive campaign with it than without it.