Romney Donations Surge to $170 Million for September

Romney's planning on burying the Democrat ticket in the last couple of weeks, and they've got the cash for it.

At the Los Angeles Times, "Romney's donations hit $170 million, close to Obama's":

WASHINGTON — Republican presidential challenger Mitt Romney saw a surge of donations in September, bringing in $170 million, a major cash infusion that will help pay for a deluge of advertising in the final weeks of the White House contest.

Romney came close to matching the $181 million that President Obama raised last month — and he did so during a rocky period for his candidacy and before his solid performance in the Oct. 3 debate, an event that greatly energized the Republican base.

Campaign officials indicated Monday that October was shaping up to be even better on the money front. Spokeswoman Andrea Saul tweeted that the campaign had raised more than $27 million in online donations in the first two weeks, better than any month's total so far.

The rapid contribution pace set by the former Massachusetts governor in September puts him on track to join Obama in raising more than $1 billion for his presidential bid by election day, with both surpassing the previous record.

As of Sept. 30, Romney had pulled in nearly $839 million through his campaign, the Republican National Committee and a joint fundraising committee, according to Federal Election Commission data and the Campaign Finance Institute.

And the details of the ad blitz at the Washington Post, "Romney tries to bury Obama in ads":

Republican nominee Mitt Romney and his allies are banking heavily on a high-risk, high-reward media strategy in the final weeks of the campaign, hoping that burying President Obama in ads will give them a crucial edge on Election Day.

Ad purchases in the presidential race doubled or in some cases tripled last week in swing states such as Colorado, Florida, Iowa and Virginia, tracking data show. The surge is being driven by Romney and well-funded allies, who decided against running more ads earlier in the campaign in favor of a big bang at the end.

Restore Our Future, a super PAC dedicated to helping Romney, has booked $14 million worth of ads in nine states for the final week of October — more than it spent on ads during the month of September. The group is also ramping up its spending, airing a mix of ads criticizing Obama and extolling Romney in Florida, Iowa, Michigan, Ohio and Virginia.

Charles R. Spies, the super PAC’s treasurer, said conservative groups “have been very effective in leveling the playing field” with Obama. “That effort will continue at an increasing level going forward,” he said.

The GOP effort has gained momentum with Romney’s advance in the polls since the first presidential debate in Denver, where Obama turned in a widely panned performance. The Oct. 3 event sparked an influx of donations to Romney’s campaign and to conservative groups supporting him, giving them more resources for the final push, strategists said.

The ramped-up advertising by Republicans left Obama behind his GOP foes in total ad expenditures last week for the first time since the summer, though he has massive cash reserves after raising $181 million in September. Obama and his key outside ally, the Priorities USA Action super PAC, have kept up a steady barrage ads attacking Romney in Ohio and other battlegrounds.

It's not like they'll be hurting for material, or anything: