Obama's suffering because Hillary Clinton didn't challenge him in the primaries

I think that's what Politico is arguing here. It's hard to tell. Ben Smith and Rebecca Elliott have written another in the long line of articles alleging that Obama's slow fundraising pace in 2012 relative to the pace in 2008 is evidence of a serious problem for Obama. And like the other articles, it fails to note that Obama didn't face a primary challenger in 2012. It just offers a whole bunch of other possible narratives -- donors are hurting financially, Obama's big supporters from four years ago are disappointed in him, the thrill is gone, etc. And while all of this may be true, it doesn't change the biggest difference, which I guess I'll italicize yet again: Obama didn't face a primary challenger in 2012. The major reason Obama hasn't raised the kind of money in the spring of 2012 that he raised in 2008 is because he hasn't needed it.

(via Jamelle Bouie)