News shocker: Ron Paul was biggest GOP fundraiser last quarter

Well, it's official, ladies and gentlemen. Believe it or not, Rep. Ron Paul, the 72-year-old Texan who hardly ever gets mentioned in Republican political news and the one-time libertarian who always gets the least time on TV debates if he isn't barred completely, was, in fact, the most successful Republican fundraiser in the last three months of 2007.

By a Texas mile.

By the thousands, Paul's fervent followers donated $19.95 million to the "Ron Paul Revolution." He spent $17.75 million, and at year's end, had $7.8 million cash on hand, making him the only Republican candidate to increase his fundraising totals in every quarter of 2007. According to his website, Paul's Paulunteers have contributed another $4.1 million this month to...

fuel the strict constitutionalist's travels and advertising campaign.

Compare that impressive financial success with, say, ex-candidate Rudy Giuliani, who raised only $14.4 million from Oct. 1 to Dec. 31 and spent $18.2 million.

Or the departed Fred Thompson, who collected $8.9 million and spent $13.9 million.

Or even the newly-minted Republican front-runner Sen. John McCain, who raked in only $9.9 million, spent $10.5 million and had only $2.9 million cash in hand. Of course, McCain's string of primary victories in January will have boosted his financial fortunes. Everybody loves a winner.

Mitt Romney actually raised only $9.2 million from other people last quarter, less than half of Paul's haul. However, the former Massachusetts governor -- and if he keeps spending at this rate, the quite possibly former multimillionaire -- gave himself $18 million more of his own money last fall for a total of $27.2 million and $2.4 million cash on hand.

Former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee, who's had trouble raising money, issued an unusual statement Thursday night. "My presidential campaign," he said, "has defied the odds and will continue to do so, as we head into the Super Tuesday primaries, proving the power of message over money and mechanics."

The statement did not include any Huckabee figures for the fourth quarter. Which suggests that the winner of the Republican caucuses in Iowa didn't have a very good fourth quarter.

So a certain suspicious blogger, led by the experienced hand of The Times' campaign finance expert Dan Morain, went to the website of the Federal Election Commission and looked up Huckabee's fourth-quarter report. It seems he raised about $6.7 million, a third of Paul's sum, while spending $7.08 million, leaving him on New Year's Eve with cash on hand of only $651,300.68. No wonder he didn't mention numbers in the news release.

Now, this month Huckabee will have received some donations after his Jan. 3 Iowa win. But it does raise serious questions about how long the Arkansan can continue to compete after Feb. 5 or even how much he can do before other than get on as many free radio and TV shows as possible.

Paul, who's done well in some symbolic straw polls and little-noticed state caucuses until his best showing so far as a second-place finisher to Romney in the Nevada caucuses, has repeatedly disavowed a third-party effort if his bid to be the Republican nominee in St. Paul next summer falls short.

His determined followers maintain that a news media conspiracy is holding down Paul's success at the polls, although obviously word has gotten out to somebody for him to raise such sums. Paul's outspoken stands, including withdrawal from Iraq and drastic downsizing of the federal government, run counter to each of his GOP competitors.

As for Paul's campaign, his loyal troops plan another "money bomb," a big fundraising day, today in honor of Ron and Carol Paul's 51st wedding anniversary. One of the obvious gifts: the undisputed GOP fundraising championship for the last three months of 2007.

--Andrew Malcolm

Comments

[Angela]

Thanks, Andrew.
Unfortunately, CNN didn't help my candidate much with the last televised debate before the primaries. They weren't fair to Huckabee either. I just can't believe what I have been witnessing. There were 4 men on that stage Americans needed to hear, but we only heard from 2. Exclusion has been Paul's problem, because when people hear him, they get on board. It definitely was intentional, and blatant. Really, really unbelievable.

(Yes, we were live-blogging during that debate and made the very same point. You could see Huckabee throw up his hands at one point. Check out our item on that from
Wednesday night.)
Angela

[Dot]

Thank-you for this refreshing column! It is important that Americans are allowed to see and hear about ALL the candidates without bias. However,the more we Americans are ignored the louder we get!!!!! We the people will not let our rights to be trampled into the ground. Remember our CONSTITUTION! Read it and then you will VOTE FOR RON PAUL !!!!!!

[Sandor Bors]

Of course, this story is reported on a blog and not the print - where the majority of voters get there news. So this only accommodates those that already know his format and are not surprised by the feat. The game plan to marginalize him is slowly losing steam and the message of freedom,peace, and prosperity will be self evident, whether or not the greatest candidate since the days of our founders wins the election or not.

(Au contraire these days as so many have pointed out in these comments. This story will be here forever and thousands have already read it. Had it been in print, it would be lining a parakeet cage by tomorrow morning. Online is the future. That's how you got here. Thanks for reading and hope you check back often.)

[lastnymleft]

We will do anything to get Dr Paul elected. It's that important. The money is just one example of such.

For any that haven't yet, take a good close look at Dr Paul, and LISTEN to what he is saying.

Join us - you will at some point - resistance (to the Truth) is futile.

[dominique heilshorn]

Thank you so much for reporting fairly about Dr. Paul...it is so much better to smell the fresh air of truth and fairness in the media after how the good Dr. was treated in the CNN debate.... as ever their unfair and blatant exclusion of Dr. Paul in the debate was more obvious than ever because there were only FOUR candidates in that stage ....we the people is grateful for this article...thank you so much and God Bless always

[rick traylor]

In any other time period, the story of Ron Paul would have created a daily news story of media interest. No wonder there is so much discussion of bias and conspiracy. I often wonder what ancient Romans were discussing just prior to the fall of their empire.

[Leah]

Great article! Thanks for unbiased reporting on Ron paul, he doesn't get that too often from those in the media. Today's money bomb looks be big - I just donated and please, everyone else, donate today in honor of his 51st wedding anniversary!

[mana]

Great article Andrew....
Thanks much.
Go Ron Paul

[CANADA LOVES RON PAUL!!!!]

There is an ongoing Canadian poll by the Canadian Centre for Policy Studies:

http://policystudies.ca/index.php?option=com_poll&task=results&id=18

It asked, "Who do you think would make a better President for Canada?"

Dr. Ron Paul was favored by 42.9% of the respondents.

None of the other talking heads on loan from the establishment/special interest groups in the USA even came remotely close to Dr. Paul...

So if the GOP is dumb enough not to select this guy, please send him up here to run as our Prime Minister...

[Jose Castillo]

Jim of bentley: Wrong! Ron Paul is someone that everyone trusts, there is not one person who cannot go back and look at his record. The point is that only 1 out of 10 people over the age of 40 knows who he is (~10%). This is mainly due to the lack of latenight and major media coverage.

On top of that from day one he was labeled a 2nd tier. So much for the polls that the mainstream media used to FORCE down our throats Rudy. It's those nice polls that told us that Rudy was the national "frontrunner". Since Paul (not known to most americans) polled low, they never gave him the time of day. And after watching the CNN debate a few days ago, it is clear who the media has anointed Romney and McCain as the only two in the race. Huckabee and Ron was left clear out of the talk (Ron Paul is however used to being left out of most debates, in all debates he has yet to break 10 minutes of total air time, and he is always asked stupid questions like "Are you running for the wrong party"? - There is not a GOP in the race more conservative than he is). Even though Huckabee won Iowa and Ron Paul has come in second in both Nevada and LA! They were still shut out of the talk.

As I go around and canvas for Paul, I hear from people that they like him but will not vote for him because he "has not shot" at winning! The "media" has done their job. Labeling him a "longshot" from day one put in the back of many peoples mind that a vote for Ron Paul will not mean anything. If the media gave all the candidates equal time from the beginning, millions would know who he is. The average person does not follow the political race, we know that from the low turnouts.

I am kind of happy that Ron Paul will not become president. The US does not deserve him. The citizens of the US cannot see that their country is controlled by the few. We go around spreading democracy, yet we here in the US we have the media tell us who to vote for. I guarantee you, if the media ran story after story on Ron and actually covered him, he would have been president. Why? Simple. He is a smart man who understands what this country needs. He was the ONLY ONE who tried to warn us that America was in a recession from the beginning of March '07. He brought this up in debate after debate. Go back and watch the Michigan debates on YouTube, you will see Ron Paul was warning you America, did you listen? No. Romney and McCain just smile and laugh at him. Well America, as your dollar continues to collapse, the only one being made fun of is you.

[Robert Moore]

I would be very surprised to see the MSM do a Feature presentation on Ron Paul's incredible fundraising last quarter. It will be casually mentioned and dismissed. They won't give him the air time and thus his numbers will lag. It goes to show that the Media moguls are tools of the government and industry and will only promote those that are not threatening to the status-quo

[judy]

Yes, we scour the new to get any "cumbs" of info about Ron Paul. Thanks for your report. Even if it is old news.... This story would have been picked up long ago if Romny, McCain, Guiliani, or Huckabee had accomplished this kind of fundraising. Who would Americans pick if they were really aware of the choices? Mainstream media offers the least and most narrow selection of information, yet is where most people get theirs. It's been shocking to watch Ron Paul"s heroic, honest and almost impossible journey. He just wants to remind us that we are supposed to be basing our actions on the Constitution. If we don't like it, we can change it. We should not and cannot ignor it.

[LA Pete]

Nothing shocking at all.

[Randall in Louisiana]

Thank you Mr. Andrew Malcolm!
We Ron Paul campaigners are truly grateful for this excellent article.
Please keep in touch with our progress and report again very soon.
Please consider contacting Congressman Paul for an interview.
God bless you sir!!!

[guy borders md]

yes,

Thank you for being honest and covering this news. My guess is fox(or is it faux) and msnbc and cnn will 'bury it'. But, who knows, maybe they will figure out the irony in that the very candidate that they discriminate against is the only candidate (DEM or REP) that would defend their right to freedom of the speech.

Thank you.

Guy

[Darryl Schmitz]

Hi Andrew,
Well, I do not think it's necessarily a media "conspiracy" as much as it's a combination of other variables like 1) the media's casual overreliance on the major national polls, which tend to create the conditions for the polls to self-fulfill and self-perpetuate their numbers, with the cooperation of 2) laziness on the part of national news media "professionals" who ignobly revere the concept of appealing to the lowest common denominator when assembling their coverage of the news, and 3) lazy, unmotivated voters (this is nothing new, is it?) who say to themselves, "Yeah, we need a real change, but the whole system is crooked, so my vote isn't gonna count anyway," so they stay home while the regular crowd shows up at the polls because of the happy bandwagon effect and a perception that their vote "does" count, and the rest is history.
On this, the day of Ron and Carol Paul's 51st anniversary, one thing that probably will not get reported on nor analyzed by the media is the message that is being sent to the troops by the media's avoidance of Ron Paul, and that is this: "Even though Ron Paul is receiving more campaign donations from active military personnel than any other candidate, we will still not give him coverage, because you - the people putting your lives at risk for this country - are merely 'tools', pawns of the powerbrokers in Washington, and your voices in the process of electing your commander-in-chief are unimportant to us."
What are your thoughts?

[Ricky Beaman]

People who do not support Ron Paul, you should be able to see from this, both the comments and from the money raised, that there is a MASSIVE following for Ron Paul.

Whether you like his ideas or not, you should be at least able to respect that he deserves the same amount of coverage as everybody else. This is for the presidential election, and it's important that EVERYBODY can make an informed decision about all the candidates.

You must ask yourself: why isn't the media giving fair coverage? They'll most likely argue because Ron Paul doesn't stand a chance. But not only do things like this prove otherwise, but it's circular logic. Ron Paul doesn't stand a chance if the media don't cover him! How far would have Mc Cain or Romney gotten without mainstream media support?

Consider these points, and check out Ron Paul's ideas. If you just vote for who you 'like the look of' or who you 'think' will win, then not only are you betraying yourself, but you're also betraying your country and the rest of the world.

[charlotte]

the money WOULD be translated into votes if he wasn't predominately blacked out by the media! people need to hear the truth.

*also note, Ron Paul also came in SECOND in Louisiana.

[Patrick]

Here's an interesting tidbit: A look at the donor data reveals several NEWSCORP employees donated the maximum amount to HIllary Clinton's campaign.

I guess FOX NEWS is trying to balance out their karma...

[Jeff Livingston]

Wow...Why didn't we see this in the PRINT NEWS?!? I mean, a candidate "with no chance" drastically outperforming the "first tier" candidates?!? What a story! What is really going on in this election?...I mean REALLY...inquiring minds want to know. Apparently, the elite don't want us to know. THAT, too, would be a great story, wouldn't it?

With your paper needing cash, a guy would think that you'd put such an amazing feat on the FRONT PAGE OF THE PAPER and incolude a little reporting and investigation about it...if you guys still do that anymore.

Maybe you're so flush with money that the advertising this story could generate is not needed?

Thanks anyway, but here on the blog, you're just speaking to Ron's choir.

Jeff Livingston

[Caldera]

Thanks LA Times for reporting on Paul! Like someone said above, please participate in being a media pioneer with truthful reporting on Dr. Paul. He is America's true hero and answer for the leader we need. Please print articles about him in your paper and spread the word to the good people who do not rely on the internet for political information. RON PAUL 08
http://www.ronpaul08.com/video-network

[federico sixto]

anderson cooper LIED when he told a frustrated RON PAUL and Huckabee to wait ...they will get a chance to comment...INSTEAD ANDERSON COOPER childishly disrespected them...why is he afraid Ron Paul's ideas...that's a REAL DEBATE not a beauty contest between his personal favorite candidates Romney and McCain..

[Chris]

In the Czech Republic they use an hourglass to make sure that the time that each candidate gets to speak during a debate is the same. Here is the link (look at 5:45):

http://www.ceskatelevize.cz/vysilani/10160455654-vaclav-klaus-a-jan-svejnar-u-senatoru-cssd/208411034000023-29.01.2008-13:00.html

[Elaine McLellan]

Thanks for the fair article. Go ron Paul!

[DeniseA]

Jeremy wrote:
"The only reason that word has gotten out is through the internet. And that is a big reason why alot of his supporters are younger, because we frequent the net more than the older generations."

I'm 57 yrs old and never voted in my life until now.
us "older" folks frequent the internet just as much as the young generation and know a good thing when we see it.

GO RON GO!