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California golden for President Obama

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(CNN) - Is California President Barack Obama's ATM?

The president heads to California Wednesday for four fund-raisers. It's his third fund-raising swing through the Golden State over the past month.

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The president's raised over $44 million in California this cycle, according to data through the end of April from Political MoneyLine. That's nearly $16 million more than the amount Obama's raised in New York, which is second when it comes to contributions for president.

But the fact the Golden State is number one is no surprise.

"California has been a critical source of funds for Democratic presidents since the Warner Brothers helped lead Hollywood into Franklin Roosevelt's camp in the 1930s. The rise of Silicon Valley in the 1990s reinforced California's importance for Democrats, providing them two lucrative sources of funds," says CNN Senior Political Analyst Ron Brownstein, the editorial director at National Journal.

"But the state may be more important than ever for Obama this cycle because Wall Street, another traditional bastion of Democratic fund-raising, has cooled so severely toward him. The slicked-back moguls of LA, and the laid back billionaires of Silicon Valley, may be the only sources Obama can tap to try to remain competitive with the mega-dollar conservative donors flooding GOP super PACS with dollars," adds Brownstein, author of "The Power and the Glitter," a history of the relationship between Hollywood and Washington.

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California's not only lucrative for the president, it's also the state that's contributed the most campaign cash so far this cycle to Mitt Romney. Obama's Republican challenger has raised more than $10.5 million in the Golden State, nearly $1 million more than he's collected in New York, which ranks second.

So when you wonder why both presidential candidates are spending so much time in a state that's clearly not in play in November's general election, stop wondering.



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