George Soros, a currency speculator and philanthropist who has given hundreds of millions of dollars to foster Democracy around the world, has turned his sights towards fostering Democratic Party voters around the country. Alex Bolton has the story for The Hill.

Billionaire financier George Soros hosted a fundraiser for Senate Democrats last week at his Manhattan home, making his first foray into politics after spending $25 million of his money in an effort to defeat President Bush last year.

Soros gathered about 60 of his friends and acquaintances in his Upper East Side home Thursday to hear a presentation from Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, according to a knowledgeable source. The event raised an estimated $250,000 for Senate Democratic candidates.

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Until last week, Soros had kept his distance from Democratic fundraising circles since Sen. John Kerry’s (D-Mass.) loss to Bush last November. And Soros let it be known that he would not again donate to America Coming Together (ACT), the 527 soft-money group that mobilized swing-state voters for Democrats.

Already this election cycle, various liberal political groups have been vying for access to Soros’s deep pockets. But before the DSCC event, Soros had not opened his wallet to any of them.

Bolton inficates that the fundraiser might be a testament to the abilities of Schumer more than an indication of Soros' intentions. Nevertheless, the Democrats will need money -- and lots of it -- if they want any shot at making headway in the 2006 midterms, and bringing in cash from Soros and his friends is certainly a good start.