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Romney, Giuliani Spend Heavily NewsMax.com Wires
WASHINGTON -- Republicans Mitt Romney and Rudy Giuliani ramped up their presidential campaign spending in the second quarter of the year, with Romney outpacing his contributions with an aggressive media strategy. Romney lent his campaign $6.5 million to keep up with the $20.5 million he spent from April through June. Giuliani, who raised $14.9 million for the primary contest, spent about 73 cents for every primary dollar he raised. Financial reports filed Friday show that Romney more than doubled his television advertising in the spring, spending $4.9 million on a media strategy that helped elevate his standing from relative unknown to leading contender. The spending on ads, Romney's single biggest expense of the quarter, was a significant escalation even for a candidate who has been pursuing a determined advertising campaign. The former Massachusetts governor spent $1.8 million on media in the first three months. Overall, Romney reported operating expenditures of $20.4 million. He raised $14 million in contributions. Giuliani reported $17.5 million from donors and political action committees in the quarter, but about $2.6 million was designated for the general election and can only be used if he wins the Republican nomination. Romney did not collect any general election money.
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Giuliani and Romney were the first leading presidential candidates to file second-quarter reports with the Federal Election Commission. The deadline for submitting detailed finances to the FEC is midnight Sunday. Notably, Giuliani boosted his New York fundraising base and more than doubled his donations from Florida, a key early state in the nominating contests. The former New York mayor spent $11 million during that period, leaving him $14.6 million in the bank for the primary at the end of the second quarter. Romney had $12.1 million cash on hand. So far he has lent his campaign nearly $9 million. Romney has reported personal assets worth between $190 million and $250 million. Both candidates are well ahead of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., in the cash they have on hand. McCain was forced to restructure his staff after being left with $2 million in the bank and more than $1 million in debts at the midyear point. McCain had not yet filed his detailed finances with the FEC. McCain, speaking to reporters in New Hampshire Friday, took responsibility for the state of his campaign. He said his support for changes in immigration law had hurt him with conservative voters and his backing of the war in Iraq had driven away independents.
Overall, McCain has raised about $26 million so far this year. Counting his debt, his campaign has spent nearly the entire amount. "I've fought wasteful spending for a very long period of time and I'm fighting this," he said. "When I see mistakes I correct them." None of the leading Democratic contenders had filed their reports by Friday evening. In Iowa, Democratic Sen. Joe Biden, who has been lagging far behind the top four candidates in the field in money and public opinion polls, said he had restructured his fundraising operation and set a goal of raising $25 million for the year. Biden said he raised $2.5 million in the last quarter, enough to keep his organization running. The amount Romney spent on media displays a concerted plan to build the former Massachusetts governor's name recognition. One of the least-known of the top Republican contenders, Romney has been the most aggressive advertiser. Since the beginning of the year, Romney has spent $6.6 million on media, most of it devoted to television ads aired on national cable and in such key early battleground states as Iowa and New Hampshire. The campaign has also spent money on radio ads in Iowa and New Hampshire. Most of advertising money went to National Media, a consulting firm run by Romney's media guru Alex Castellanos. While Romney has risen to the top in polls in Iowa and New Hampshire, he still trails Giuliani, McCain and former senator and actor Fred Thompson, who hasn't officially declared, in national polls. Giuliani's top single expense was his campaign staff. He spent $1.7 million on payroll and nearly $850,000 on payroll taxes. Romney, however, had a bigger staff expense _ $1.9 million for payroll and nearly $1.5 million for payroll services and insurance. Giuliani also paid $1.9 million to Olsen & Shuvalov, a direct marketing firm that specializes in outreach to voters and donors. Both candidates had substantial travel expenses. Romney listed $1.26 million in travel and Giuliani reported $1 million. His biggest single travel expense was flights on a corporate jet owned by Elliott Asset Management. The firm is run by longtime Giuliani fundraiser Paul Singer. In fundraising, Giuliani tapped his home state of New York, California and Texas for $7.4 million. California and New York are fundraising meccas for national political candidates. Giuliani has a vast network of contacts in Texas; he is a partner in the Houston-based law firm of Bracewell & Giuliani. He also raised $1.5 million in New Jersey, a state where he is well-known from his days as a New York mayor and U.S. attorney. Significantly, Giuliani raised $1.7 million in Florida, more than twice the amount he raised in the state during the first three months of the year. Giuliani has been spending considerable time in Florida raising money, but also establishing a political foothold in the state. The Florida primary is scheduled for Jan. 29. Romney raised nearly $2 million in California. Romney's business and church connections were evident in the $1.4 million he raised from Utah, his second highest donor state. Romney is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, or the Mormon church, which is headquartered in Salt Lake City. Among ZIP codes, Provo, Utah, was third in Romney's top donor locales. © 2007 Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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