The American public made clear in the 2006 midterm elections that it was no longer satisfied with Republican rule in Washington.  According to a report today from ABC News’ Scott Mayerowitz, some of the biggest firms on Wall Street are voicing the same concern the best way they know how - $$$.  The report reads:

Workers at Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, Lehman Brothers and elsewhere are putting their cash behind Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama and John Edwards over the Republican front-runners, according to an analysis of Federal Election Commission filings by ABC News. 

And it’s not just the employees that are shifting allegiances.  John Mack, CEO of finance management giant Merrill Lynch, raised roughly $200,000 dollars for President Bush in the 2004 campaign cycle.  But so far for ’08, his cash flow has been in Hillary Clinton’s direction. 

All in all, of the top ten donating firms on Wall Street, five have given the majority of their donations to Democratic nominees rather than to Republicans, four in the other direction, and one, the Bank of America, is statistically bipartisan in its financial contributions. 

So does all this mean a change in the tides?  Not necessarily, says Mayerowitz.  “Don't be mistaken — there are still plenty of Republican supporters on Wall Street. But, for the first time in more than a decade, Democratic donors outnumber those supporting Republicans.”

The shift raises several questions:  Is this really a significant change? To what degree?  How long will it last?  But here’s the one I’m interested in: Is this actually a good thing for Democratic candidates? 

Many voters who would traditionally support a Democratic candidate for office frown upon big money donations from big money organizations because they don’t like the idea of their candidates being bought and paid for by the financial powers that be.  In fact, some candidates campaign on such a platform.  Does this make them hypocritical?  At the same time, voters might not care or figure hey, it’s all just part of the game, and the more money, the better.  Whichever the case, campaigners and fundraisers on both sides of the aisle are sure to take notice.