'A group of leading Democrats...are officially forming what are expected be the major outside groups to combat Republicans—and support President Obama—in the 2012 elections with help from huge donations from big money donors and corporations who will have the legal ability to stay in the shadows that Mr. Obama has previously so vocally criticized...The groups are to be called Priorities USA and Priorities USA Action, and, as such, are modeled after the Republican groups American Crossroads and Crossroads GPS that were started with help from the uber strategist Karl Rove and were credited with helping greatly in the party’s takeover of the House of Representatives this year—and, it happens, with facilitating a waterfall of anonymous donations from moneyed interests in the November elections...Mr. Obama has spoken out against such outside groups in the harshest terms, using a radio address in August to complain of their ads, “We don’t know who’s behind these ads and we don’t know who’s paying for them.” But the White House gave its veiled, but public approval to Democrats looking to form such groups after the party took a beating in last fall’s congressional elections and the Republican groups indicated they planned to play an even bigger role in 2012 against the President...Officials with the group said seed money has come from the Service Employees International Union and the film mogul Jeffrey Katzenberg.'
