Obama hits $45m fundraising mark President Barack Obama has stepped up his fundraising efforts amid growing concern among Democrats that he is struggling to rake in sufficient cash from big donors. Mr Obama raised $45m in February, significantly more than the $29m for January and well above the $11m pulled in last month by Mitt Romney, frontrunner for the Republican nomination. The Obama campaign is counting on building a huge cash advantage over its rival for the White House in the coming months, partly to counter an expected flood of outside spending through super-political action committees that should favour the Republican candidate. But there have been some alarm bells ringing among advisers at Obama re-election headquarters in Chicago. For one, the February haul - which includes money for the Democratic National Committee - was less than the $56m Mr Obama raised during the same month in 2008 at the height of the primary battle that pitted him against Hillary Clinton. In addition, an analysis of Federal Election Commission data by the Washington Post on Monday found that 11,175 people had each given Mr Obama's campaign more than $2,000 in this election cycle, up to January 31. This was less than half of the big donors Mr Obama attracted in 2008 for that period and less than a quarter of the big donors secured by George W. Bush for his 2004 re-election campaign. The president's latest fundraising event was in Atlanta on Friday, when he touted the need for an "eight-year project" in office at a reception organised by Tyler Perry, the actor and film and television producer. "I know I'm a little greyer now and it's not as trendy to be an Obama supporter, because it's not as fresh," Mr Obama said, drawing laughter from the group. But my determination is unwavering. My passion to bring about change is undiminished. The need is still great. The same day, his wife Michelle, who has also ratcheted up her involvement in fundraising, was in Minneapolis for her own campaign event. Mr Obama's struggles in wooing large donors could be the result of a number of factors, including the administration's efforts to impose tighter regulations on Wall Street in the Dodd-Frank financial reform bill. This may have turned away some large independent donors who are now pinning their hopes on Mr Romney, a former Bain Capital executive. There may also be broader dissatisfaction - and disenchantment - with the president because of his handling of the economy. But among staunchly Democratic big donors, the Obama campaign also wants to guard against complacency. The fraught Republican primary contest and gradually improving approval ratings for Mr Obama may have reduced the sense of urgency felt by some of his supporters to immediately write cheques. Last week Jim Messina, his campaign manager, sent out an email in which he warned that some polls were showing Mr Romney in the lead against Mr Obama if the election were held today. "We're looking at a race that will be tighter than you think," Mr Messina said. And the other side has groups ready to spend hundreds of millions of dollars to tear down President Obama. It may be fun to point and laugh at the spectacle on the other side, but we have a massive amount of work to do and a dwindling amount of time to get it done.