Relying overwhelmingly on people who can afford to write $2,500 checks, Mitt Romney’s campaign raised more money than President Obama’s in 18 states, and more than Newt Gingrich’s in all but three states, but the former House speaker received more than twice as much money as the former Massachusetts governor from people giving small donations.
Mr. Romney ended 2011 with 10 times more money in the bank than Mr. Gingrich - money that has allowed him to assemble an army of 100 staffers, compared with only 25 for Mr. Gingrich.
Mr. Gingrich did not outraise Mr. Obama in any state and outraised other Republicans in only three, according to campaign financial filings Tuesday, though the tallies do not include small donations because those are not broken down by state in disclosures.
Mr. Romney steadily raised $1.5 million weekly, dwarfing the money raised by Mr. Gingrich, but as the weeks progressed, neither Mr. Gingrich nor Mr. Romney seemed to be able to gain lasting momentum over the other in terms of numbers of contributions.
Nonetheless, Mr. Romney’s ability to maintain a consistent number of donations means he is acquiring some new support: His reliance on wealthy maxed-out donors eliminates the prospect of repeated donations for many. The risks of relying heavily on a limited segment of the country’s population to fuel a campaign were evident in the carcasses of the campaigns who were vanquished.
Carcasses of campaigns
Texas Gov. Rick Perry had nearly $4 million in leftover campaign funds at year’s end, but the majority came from his home state, and he abandoned his bid for the presidency days into the new year when moneyed support in Texas failed to translate nationally.
Michele Bachmann, a fierce critic of government overspending, finished the year with $1 million in debt after hoping caucuses would allow her, a Minnesota congresswoman, to break out of her limited base.
The prospect of such debt is likely on the mind of former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum. He enjoyed a spurt of support in the final days of December, raising $90,000 compared with the $40,000 per week he’d been averaging, but unless that spike accelerates dramatically in February, it is unclear how he could mount a presence in upcoming primaries.
Mr. Santorum’s bid also has underscored that much-talked about super PACs are “unlimited money” sources in theory only. A super PAC supporting him raised only $760,000.
Family ties
If Mr. Gingrich is short on cash, it did not stop him from spending it close to home. The campaign paid more than $20,000 to a consulting firm run by Mr. Gingrich’s daughter, Jackie Cushman, bringing the total fees paid to her company so far to about $54,000.
Ms. Cushman’s most visible moment during the campaign came not as a consultant but as a daughter, when she and her sister released a letter to ABC News last month defending Mr. Gingrich amid accusations from a former wife.
Election rules permit candidates to hire family if campaigns pay market rates for the services, but “most donors wouldn’t be happy if they understood the money they’re donating for the campaign is going to be used to pay a family member,” said Melanie Sloan of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington.
Mr. Gingrich also reimbursed himself $212,000 for travel, paying himself back even as the campaign carries $1 million in other debts.
Among 60 debtors is Rick Tyler, a former staffer who now runs a super PAC that raised $2 million to support Mr. Gingrich and by law must not coordinate with his campaign.
In addition, the Gingrich campaign paid $67,000 to his company, Gingrich Productions, for Web hosting services.
And two days before Christmas, the campaign paid $47,000 to purchase a mailing list from Mr. Gingrich.
Meanwhile, the Romney campaign doled out cash to some familiar faces. It paid $4.5 million to American Rambler Productions, a firm run by several top Romney advisers. Red Curve Solutions, founded by Bradley Cate, an aide to Mr. Romney both during his 2002 run for governor and his failed 2008 presidential campaign, received $380,199. And Redwave Communications, which received more than $700,000, was founded by David Kochel, a senior adviser to the Romney campaign.
The Romney campaign paid more than $500,000 to Marquis Jet Partners, and the Gingrich campaign paid $133,000 to Moby Dick Airways.
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