The question isn't that this is a surprise - it isn't. The question is how anyone who made a pledge not to take money from lobbyists -- and then take money from lobbyists -- isn't being gang tackled by the GOP presidential candidates.

New York Times:

At least 15 of Mr. Obama's "bundlers" - supporters who contribute their own money to his campaign and solicit it from others - are involved in lobbying for Washington consulting shops or private companies. They have raised more than $5 million so far for the campaign.

Because the bundlers are not registered as lobbyists with the Senate, the Obama campaign has managed to avoid running afoul of its self-imposed ban on taking money from lobbyists.

But registered or not, the bundlers are in many ways indistinguishable from people who fit the technical definition of a lobbyist. They glide easily through the corridors of power in Washington, with a number of them hosting Mr. Obama at fund-raisers while also visiting the White House on policy matters and official business.

The bundlers are not only lobbyists - they are exactly the kind of corrupting lobbyists Obama was railing against. These are the heavy hitters who visit regulators and get them to alter rules in their favor. They are close to the White House and able to represent the interests of their clients at the highest level of government.

I don't care what you call them - they are lobbyists. And, while it is too much to expect the press to come down on the president for this practice, GOP presidential candidates have some rich fodder for TV ads that show the president to be a hypocrite.