Romney's Big Number

Obviously the big news today is Romney’s 1st quarter fundraising totals. Other candidates also reporting fundraising totals today

$23 Million – Romney
$17 Million – Giuliani
$12.5 Million – McCain
$2 Million – Brownback
$500 K – Huckabee


What do the numbers mean? Here’s a few takes:

Captain’s Quarters: “What's encouraging is that both Rudy and Mitt look very competitive against Hillary. For Rudy, that has been a given. For Mitt, it might be a revelation -- and it might be enough to propel his numbers sharply upward.”

KJL at The Corner: “Now....this is just money, but money matters. I think you'll be seeing people give Romney a second look in the coming days of this still-early point in the whole process. People who hadn't really may start thinking — or thinking again: "Hey, maybe this dude could beat Hillary."

Jonathan Martin at The Politico: “So the Big News, said this person, is: "Romney surprises by topping the Republican side and coming close to Hillary despite having low name i.d., low poll numbers and not having done this before." Or, put more concisely: "Rookie Overcomes Veterans." Or better: "Where would we be at 15percent?"

Dean Barnett at Townhall: “Most of the money raised by all the top campaigns flowed in because rich guys vigorously twisted a lot of arms. In order to twist the arms of your friends to give money to a political candidate, you have to really believe in that candidate. That’s the main reason that today is a good day for Romney and a disappointment for McCain. Mitt’s strongest supporters are passionate. McCain’s support is tepid; six years of sticking your thumb in your party’s eye will have that effect.”

Personally, I’m thrilled with some needed good news. I’m sure there will be some hedging when the break down of the numbers comes out on April 15th, but it’s hard to take anything away from Romney when he clearly outdistances the other candidates in the money primary. I think that voters will start taking more notice of Romney, as KJL suggests. Certainly he still has some obstacles in proving his authenticity, but it would be hard to suggest that the Romney campaign is anything but legitimate and in it for the long haul.