Updated 12:13 p.m.
By Shailagh Murray
NEW YORK -- The Democratic National Committee will no longer accept contributions from registered federal lobbyists or political action committees, Sen. Barack Obama's campaign announced.

The move signals that Obama is beginning to assert himself as party leader, now that he has secured the nomination, and will seek to assure that the broader party machinery "conforms to all of his standards of openness and transparency," said campaign spokeswoman Linda Douglass.

Obama also is expected to overhaul the DNC staff in coming weeks, including by dispatching one of his senior strategists, Paul Tewes, to run the organization. DNC chairman Howard Dean will remain in place.

"The DNC and the Obama Campaign are unified and working together to elect Barack Obama as the next president of the United States. Our presumptive nominee has pledged not to take donations from Washington lobbyists and from today going forward the DNC makes that pledge as well," said Dean in a statement released mid-morning.

He continued: "Senator Obama has promised to change the way things are done in Washington and this step is a sure sign of his commitment. The American people's priorities will set the agenda in an Obama Administration, not the special interests."

Following Obama, DNC Announces New Fundraising Rules | The Trail | washingtonpost.com

It looks like Obama is wasting no time making the changes he campaigned on, starting with the DNC. Imagine, a campaign promise kept, and he hasn't even been elected yet!

McCain used to push for greater ethical standards and limiting lobbyist and PAC influence, although a lot of Republicans disliked him for it. So it will be interesting to see if McCain even tries to match this pledge of not accepting money from lobbyists or PACs. If he does, it will be interesting to see if he can get the RNC to go along. It'll be kind of embarrassing for McCain if he won't match the pledge or can't get the RNC to go along. He'll lose credibility on one of his signature issues.

Well, regardless of whether McCain folllows Obama's lead on this or not, good for Obama and the DNC for taking a step toward limiting the influence of special interests!
dragonrider Reviewed by dragonrider on . Following Obama, DNC Announces New Fundraising Rules Updated 12:13 p.m. By Shailagh Murray NEW YORK -- The Democratic National Committee will no longer accept contributions from registered federal lobbyists or political action committees, Sen. Barack Obama's campaign announced. The move signals that Obama is beginning to assert himself as party leader, now that he has secured the nomination, and will seek to assure that the broader party machinery "conforms to all of his standards of openness and transparency," said campaign spokeswoman Rating: 5