Game On, Let The Spending Begin

Let the spending begin. Now that Mitt Romney is the official nominee he can finally begin to spend from the war chest he has amassed. As reported earlier, Romney enjoyed a $62 million cash on hand advantage at the end of July. That gap will probably widen when the campaigns report their August numbers. In the two previous months Romney has raised more and spent less and as he enters September, the traditionally largest fund raising month, his cash advantage will begin to be felt.
In elections past big labor was able to offset any outside spending by GOP PAC's but that is history. A rundown of some of the larger GOP PAC's spending plans makes a billion dollars in outside spending extremely believable.
Karl Rove and Ed Gillespie's Crossroads GPS will spend a total of $300 million. It budgets $200 million for the presidential race, $70 million on the senate campaign, and $32 million for house races. It has already raised about two thirds of its budget.
The Koch Brother's Americans for Prosperity will spend $400 million. They don't break down their spending plan but spending is done on a county by county basis in key battleground states.
Restore Our Future, the super PAC supporting Mitt Romney, proved its potency by spending nearly $50 million in the primaries. Now able to entice big donors with a neck-and-neck general election, the group is likely to meet its new goal of spending $100 million more. Sheldon Adelson who has promised to donate "as much as it takes" donates to this group.
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce will make it best effort to repeal Obamacare by spending $100 million in the presidential and senate campaigns.
The YG Action Fund, the super PAC started by aides of the two self-styled “Young Guns” – House Republican Leader Eric Cantor and House Republican Whip Kevin McCarthy has a goal of raising about $30 million.
The Tea Party affiliated Freedom Works hopes to raise $30 million also.
The Club for Growth is tight lipped about its spending plans but based on 2010 spending levels of $8.2 million its probably good for $10 million.
The lone Obama super PAC of any size, Priorities USA will probably spend $100 million.
With Romney's pronounced advantage expect his campaign to force Obama to spend scarce cash defending what were thought to be safe states such as Connecticut, Minnesota, and New Jersey. If Romney can get traction in those three states the campaign may expand further with the purpose of forcing Obama to spend himself into oblivion.