Obama raised a record $66 million in August

From Talking Points Memo:

An Obama aide this morning sent over his fundraising number for August: More than $66 million, topping his previous best month of $55 million by $11 million or more.

The astonishing haul means Obama is more than on track to raise the $300 million or more that the campaign had intended to raise for the general election -- a total that required him to raise over $50 million a month, which he's succeeded in doing.

The total suggests that McCain's gains, and the choice of Sarah Palin, helped galvanize and expand Obama's donor base: The campaign reports adding half a million new donors this month. The haul could also help put to rest lagging questions about the strain that opting out of public financing had put on his fundraising operation.

The New York Times is reporting this figure will be the "baseline" for what Obama will have to raise each month to meet his campaign finance goals, since Obama is not taking the $84 million public financing. The Democratic National Committee has raised $17.3 million in August, and has around $17.5 million in cash on hand.

The Associated Press is reporting that President Bush will play "the role of invisible man on the campaign trail" in raising money for both John McCain and the Republican National Committee. John McCain has raised $47 million in August, with the RNC collecting another $22 million for the McCain campaign. John McCain will accept public financing of $84 million from the U.S. Treasury.