my money where my mouth is. 2004 is not an ordinary election. It's a referendum on the Bush doctrine. The future of the world hangs in the balance," Soros told an audience at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

According to the endowment's website, the speech was meant to launch Soros' new book, "The Bubble of American Supremacy: Correcting the Misuse of American Power."

George Soros

WorldNetDaily reported the Hungarian-born billionaire seeks to raise up to $75 million and has pledged more than $15 million of his own money to prevent Bush from staying in the White House.

He committed an unprecedented $10 million to "Americans Coming Together," or ACT, which plans to mobilize voters in 17 states regarded as battlegrounds in the 2004 election.

WorldNetDaily reported Soros also pledged up to $5 million to mobilize anti-Bush activists and voters online. He and other wealthy donors are financing the Internet political-mobilization project MoveOn.org, founded by a California millionaire in 1998 to defend President Clinton from impeachment.

MoveOn.org recently featured two potential TV ads that compare Bush to Adolf Hitler, ads Soros reportedly condemned, Fox News reported. Even so, he said he would continue to bankroll the site.

In yesterday's speech, Soros said it's not enough to just defeat Bush.

"We must also develop and adopt a more constructive vision," he said. "It is exactly because America is so powerful that it matters so much what role it plays in the world. . Our pre-eminence imposes on us a unique responsibility: We must take a broader view of our self-interest and concern ourselves with the well-being of the world."

Soros distributes $400 million annually through his Open Society Institute.

In 1992, he reportedly garnered $1 billion in one day of currency trading that caused the value of the British pound to plummet. Subsequently known as "the man who broke the Bank of England," Soros says he wants to be known as the man who brought down the government of President Bush.

Motivation for the initiative is fueled by his contention the Bush administration is mishandling its power.

"The struggle for a global open society must be fought primarily in the United States, because the United States has clearly become the dominant power in the world," he said in a June interview, according to the National Post. "I feel that the current U.S. administration is abusing its power by trying to increase that power instead of using it to try and create a more peaceful and equitable world."

As WorldNetDaily reported, the Bush campaign is taking action to counter Soros' influence, sending e-mails to supporters warning of the billionaire's mission.

"Liberal special interests, led by billionaire currency trader George Soros, are raising millions in soft, unregulated money to defeat President Bush," said the e-mail. "To beat these billionaire liberals and the flood of foreign money they're encouraging, we need your help today."

Born in 1930, Soros left his native Hungary in 1947 to study at the London School of Economics, then went to the U.S. nine years later where he began building his fortune through foreign-currency speculation.

According to his website, he has been active as a philanthropist since 1979, when he began providing funds to help black students attend the University of Cape Town in apartheid South Africa.

Last year he was fined more than $2 million by a Paris court for insider trading but plans to appeal the conviction.

He also has been accused of unfair practices in other foreign markets, including developing countries. Former Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad claims Soros bears some responsibility for Asia's 1997 economic crisis.

Previous articles:

Bush takes on Soros

White House playing into Soros' hands?

Billionaire raising $75 million to oust Bush

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