The Latest On The Money Race

By: Brian Montopoli
Topics: Republicans

The third-quarter fundraising news keeps coming: The Associated Press passes along word that former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney will report $10 million in contributions for the quarter, along with a $6 million "personal loan to the campaign." (That would be a transfer of Romney's own cash to the fund for his presidential run.)

As for John McCain, he's reportedly raised more than $5 million for the quarter, which ain't bad for a guy who the media had largely written off just a month ago. The McCain camp says it's still opening envelopes.

Newcomer Fred Thompson, meanwhile, is said to have raised around $8 million for the quarter. There's no word yet on Rudy Giuliani, but it is likely he will be at or near the top of the money list. And the campaign of Ron Paul, a libertarian Republican with a small but passionate fan base, is hinting that he's going to come in at over $3 million for the quarter – a number that makes him harder for the other candidates, and the press corps, to ignore.

Brian Montopoli
Brian Montopoli is the senior political reporter at CBSNews.com.
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by johnnysnot October 4, 2007 8:36 AM EDT: REGISTER NOW! OCT 12TH PRIMARY REGISTRY DEADLINE.; Reply to this comment


by safety1stjoe October 4, 2007 12:12 AM EDT: Re-Legalize Liberty...restore the Constitution...elect Ron Paul; Reply to this comment


by p413171 October 3, 2007 7:35 PM EDT: The media should be covering all filed candidates in the race- not just those they prefer.

I am finding Ron Paul supporters everywhere- young and old. This morning a canvaser for our towns supervisor job noted that he too supported Ron Paul. Unfortunetely, the major media is not located anywhere around here. They just get into their little circles and circle their wagon.; Reply to this comment


by atronite October 3, 2007 5:28 PM EDT: News just in. Ron Paul just made a little over 5 million dollars. That puts him about equal to John McCain.; Reply to this comment


by raesbrthctrl October 3, 2007 3:51 PM EDT: Thanks for the mention of Ron Paul''s numbers. At this point, we can only speculate, as the final numbers haven''t been tallied, but it''s accurate to say he raised $3M. And it''s also accurate to say he''ll be tougher to ignore for the media and other candidates, so I appreciate this piece from CBS.

The pro-Paul posters here are correct. Ron Paul has almost 50,000 volunteers who do far more for their candidate than anyone else in the field. If only the big print and TV media would report on him more, his donations will increase exponentially from the non-internet-savvy.

Most people I''ve talked to who do not support Ron Paul say "yes, I agree with him, but he''ll never win." Hogwash. He''ll stay in the race a long time. The longer he stays, the more people he''ll reach, and the more supporters he''ll get. The only limitation to his current wave of support is that the Old Media are largely ignoring him. With a positive Q3, maybe the Old Media will start to cover him a bit more, bringing ever more supporters into the Paul Camp.

www.ronpaul2008.com; Reply to this comment


by txwatersnake October 3, 2007 3:32 PM EDT: "small but passionate fan base"? I think you guys haven''t been paying attention, unless this is just another attempt to downplay or marginalize Ron Paul''s support. I''ve been a supporter FOR OVER A DECADE. My wife and I contributed $1000 to one of his previous Congressional re-election campaigns. Ron Paul has more honor and integrity than all the rest of Congress combined.

But put THIS in your pipe and smoke it: Writes Ken Sturzenacker: "The number of members in the 955 Ron Paul Meetup.com groups has just exceeded 50,000 for the first time, in 720 cities in 22 nations worldwide. At last count, Barck Obama - for all his fundraising prowess - still has fewer than 6,000 members at Meetup.com, in 61 groups. He''s second to RP. Hillary has about half of that."

freedomjoyadventure.blogspot.com; Reply to this comment


by willers32 October 3, 2007 12:24 PM EDT: "Small but passionate" following? What? Why is it that Ron Paul has won more straw polls (13) than any other candidate? Why is it that in head-to-head comparison of straw poll places, he has beaten every other candidate many times over. For example, Ron Paul has placed ahead of "front runner" Giuliani 26 times out of 29 polls.
I would not call that "small."; Reply to this comment


by soulmantim October 3, 2007 12:19 PM EDT: *I meant CBS; Reply to this comment


by soulmantim October 3, 2007 12:17 PM EDT: Again, until he reports it, it''s just speculation. Nice try ABC.
He hinted he made AT LEAST what he got last quarter and that was before the 1 million dollar donation week.; Reply to this comment


by soulmantim October 3, 2007 12:15 PM EDT: I don''t think 3 Million is the right number for what Ron Paul has raised.
He raised about 1 million in a Week.
Why doesn''t the reporter wait until FACTS are out to report on what Ron Paul has raised.; Reply to this comment