A pair of "super" political action
committees supporting top Republican presidential candidates spent
nearly $24 million in January, drawing upon major gifts and repeat
donations from wealthy business executives, according to financial
reports the groups filed Monday with the government.
The super PACs -- Mitt Romney-leaning
Restore Our Future and Newt Gingrich-supportive Winning Our Future --
raised a combined $17 million last month. That financial strength
allowed the groups to hit the airwaves in key primary states with
millions of dollars in expensive TV ads.
The groups' fundraising offers a periodic
behind-the-scenes glimpse into the identities of the wealthy supporters
who will help elect the next president, along with details on how the
tens of millions of dollars they donated have been spent this election
season. Restore Our Future, which spent $14 million last month, has been
boosted by more than two dozen repeat donors. Winning Our Future, which
spent $9.7 million, is largely supported by casino mogul Sheldon
Adelson and his wife.
The super PACs, as well as other groups
supporting other candidates and the individual campaigns, were required
to disclose how much they raised and the identities of their donors in
reports filed with the Federal Election Commission by midnight Monday.
Those reports provided a snapshot of
fundraising for President Barack Obama's early campaign and for
Republican candidates as they battled during important primary elections
in January. During the month, GOP candidates Newt Gingrich and Rick
Santorum had briefly surged ahead of front-runner Mitt Romney but
trailed the former Massachusetts governor in fundraising. Since then,
Santorum has climbed remarkably in polls as support eroded just as
stunningly for Gingrich following his disappointing showing in Florida.
Restore Our Future has been a boon for
Romney, who has benefited greatly from the group's TV ads attacking
Gingrich in particular. Such ads were purchased thanks to the financial
help of repeat donors, including Marriott International Chairman J.W.
Marriott Jr., who has given the super PAC $750,000 to date.
The super PAC also reported new donors,
including Hewlett-Packard CEO Meg Whitman. Romney mentored Whitman,
recently an unsuccessful candidate for California governor, during the
1980s at Boston-based Bain & Co., the private equity firm Romney
headed. Whitman's $100,000 check to Restore Our Future came days after
she joined Romney at a celebration of his victory in the New Hampshire
primary.
Restore Our Future counted on continued
support from at least 30 repeat donors who have given a combined $6.6
million in January, according to a review of the reports by The
Associated Press.
Meanwhile, Winning Our Future's $11 million
in contributions during the same period came almost exclusively from
Adelson, a friend of Gingrich's and a staunch supporter of Israel.
Adelson and his wife, Miriam, each gave $5 million to the super PAC in
January -- a move that helped keep Gingrich's struggling campaign alive.
Other GOP-leaning super PACs reported major contributions.
Endorse Liberty, the group supporting Texas
Rep. Ron Paul, reported roughly $2.4 million in donations, including
$1.7 from the billionaire founder of PayPal, Peter Thiel of San
Francisco. Thiel, who runs a hedge fund, is a libertarian who has
supported Republican causes and candidates and also has donated to
California's marijuana legalization ballot measure.
Obama's campaign last Friday reported
raising a combined $29.1 million in January among the campaign, the
Democratic National Committee and other joint fundraising committees.
The major super PAC backing Obama, Priorities USA Action, has yet to
file its January report.
Romney raised $6.5 million last month for
his presidential bid, while Gingrich's presidential campaign raised $5.5
million last month.
The reports likely will rekindle criticism
of the groups, which were made possible under a 2010 Supreme Court
ruling in the Citizens United case. The super PACs must legally remain
independent from the candidates they support, but many are staffed with
former campaign aides who have intimate knowledge of the campaigns' strategies.
Late Friday, the Supreme Court put on hold a
Montana case that bore striking similarities. Two justices said the
newest case provides an opportunity for the court to reconsider whether
the millions of dollars that millionaires and billionaires have poured
into the presidential election should be allowed to continue.
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