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John McCain may be feeling a backlash from big GOP donors angry with his support of reforms limiting the flow of “soft money” to political campaigns.

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In the 2004 election cycle, 37 major contributors gave a combined $44 million to the conservative Republican group, the Progress for America Voter Fund (PFA-VF). The group, operating as a 527 organization, took in large donations exceeding the limits that candidates and parties can accept.

Last year, the Federal Election Commission ruled that the PFA-VF violated election law by failing to register as a political committee, failing to report contributions and expenditures, taking individual contributions of more than $5,000, and accepting corporate and/or union money. The FEC fined the PFA-VF $750,000 – the third largest in FEC history – and required it to file donor reports.

A Muckety analysis of the most recent FEC filings for the 37 major donors to PFA-VF shows:

• Only 14 (38%) have contributed to John McCain’s 2008 presidential campaign – total $36,600.
• 13 (35%) contributed to Mitt Romney’s 2008 presidential campaign – total $28,700.
• Nine of the 37 (24%) contributed to Rudy Giuliani’s 2008 presidential campaign – total $20,700.
• 26 (70%) contributed to the Republican National Committee during the 2004 election cycle – total almost $1 million.
• Eight (22%) have yet to make a contribution to any candidate for president in the 2008 election cycle.
• Two (5%) have given to Democratic candidates for president.

Aubrey K. McClendon, chairman and CEO Chesapeake Energy Corporation, appears to be the leader of the anyone but McCain camp. He gave the maximum contribution to six candidates including Giuliani, Tommy Thompson, Romney, Hillary Clinton, Bill Richardson and most recently Barack Obama. He has not contributed to McCain’s campaign according to the latest FEC filings. McClendon gave $250,000 to the Progress for American Voter Fund. McClendon’s wife Kathleen has given the maximum amount to Rudy Giuliani and Bill Richardson.

Robert A. Day, Chairman of the Trust Co. of West, has donated the maximum amount to five candidates: Romney, Clinton, Chris Dodd, and in the latest reporting period to Obama and McCain. Day gave $300,000 to the Progress for American Voter Fund.

Harold C. Simmons, CEO of Contran Corp., has donated the maximum amount to four candidates: McCain, Romney, Giuliani and Duncan Hunter. Simmons gave $500,000 to the Progress for American Voter Fund.

Harlan Crow, chairman and CEO of Crow Holdings, donated the maximum amount to three candidates: Fred Thompson, Rudy Giuliani and most recently John McCain. Crow gave $500,000 to the Progress for American Voter Fund.

Fourteen of the donors have given the maximum contribution to just one candidate. And of this group, only four gave to McCain: Alex G. Spanos, Paul E. Singer, Peter M. Nicholas Sr. and William C. Powers.

Eight of the donors have not given to any candidate. They are Dawn Arnall, Alice Walton, Jay Van Andel, Bernard Marcus, Carl H. Lindner, Marian S. Ware, Marilyn Ware and Paul Ware. Marian Ware died in February of this year at the age of 91. These eight gave over $13 million to the Progress for American Voter Fund.

Five of the donors also gave $100,000 or more to the Swiftboat Veterans for Truth, another conservative 527 organization. They are Carl H. Lindner, Aubrey K. McClendon, Bob Perry, Boone Pickens and Harold C. Simmons.

John McCain has indicated that he may accept the $84.1 million in public financing that is available to candidates in the general election. Barack Obama has said that he may take a pass on the public financing of his campaign if he is the eventual Democratic nominee. Obama’s campaign has set fundraising records with $234.8 million raised through March 31, 2008. By contrast, McCain raised $71.7 million during the same period.

A Wall Street Journal report says that McCain campaign manager Rick Davis has outlined a “McCain Victory 08″ fund as a way to get around the $2,300 limit that contributors can give during the primary and again during the general election. Here is what the Journal reported:

The new structure allows up to $70,000 in individual contributions by channeling the money into different McCain-centric funds. The first $2,300 of that would go to McCain’s primary campaign. The Republican National Committee would receive $28,500 of the donation. The remaining funds would be divided equally, up to $10,000 a piece, among four states the campaign has designated as battlegrounds for November: Wisconsin, Minnesota, Colorado and New Mexico.

If the big donors continue to sit on the sidelines McCain’s best option may still be public financing.