The recent transactions open a window onto the often secretive online underworld of presidential politics. Along with knocking on doors and airing television spots, campaigns try to blanket their messages — pro and con — across the Internet, which has a whole set of rules and tricks.
A Washington Post analysis of federal campaign spending reports shows that President Obama and Romney spent thousands
of dollars this summer at GoDaddy.com.Obama’s campaign and the Democratic National Committee reported spending a combined $8,065 at GoDaddy.com this year, and Romney’s campaign reported spending $12,097 on domains. (Of that, Romney’s campaign spent $9,061 buying domains previously owned by his Free & Strong America PAC, since the names cannot be transferred.) Rep. Ron Paul (R-Tex.) reported spending $208 with companies that sell domains, and former Minnesota governor Tim Pawlenty, who dropped out of the race in August, reported spending $668.
The Perry campaign said it had not bought many domains; it reported no such expenditures in its campaign finance report filed last week.
In Campaign 2012, Web sites are the new real estate
