Decius wrote:

Several moguls, in response, ”sent back word saying ‘Fuck You’ basically,” one insider tells me, expressing how they feel used and abused by the President despite their campaign contributions...

One insider told me, “Jim explained that this notion that the Hollywood community will continue giving regardless of its business interests has to be taken into consideration. The message was, ‘Don’t expect Hollywood to show up and say ‘Who do I write the check to’ anymore.”

This sums it up though:

But when it came time for Obama to have Hollywood’s back, his administration slighted the longtime Democratic force in favor of a powerful new ally — the tech industry.

I think Obama/Democratic Party may know the sands are shifting. MPAA/RIAA cartel model is a dead end. Cringely's latest article sums that sentiment up nicely.

If Obama/Democratic Party stick to their guns and MPAA/RIAA stick to theirs, there's either A) excess lobbying money to go... where? or B) maybe MPAA/RIAA see the writing on the wall too, know there's going to be less $ to throw around as the sands of power shift, and they're just trying to dress this threat of withholding money as somehow being a position of power or leverage when in reality they're going to need later just to stay afloat.