According to a report from the Sunlight Foundation, Mitt Romney will need to outraise President Barack Obama by $158 million over the next four months if he wants to take the lead in overall fundraising. This punctures a bit of the new narrative of Romney having passed Obama in fundraising. Sunlight's Bill Allison: "For Mitt Romney, the magic number is $158 million. That's how much he'll have to outraise President Barack Obama over the last four months of the campaign to surpass the president, the record holder for campaign fundraising. Obama's advantage has been lost in media reports highighting the Republican nominee's $106 million June haul. Even Obama's campaign, including the president himself, has downplayed its financial advantage when it warns of being outspent by Romney and the Republican National Committee. For that to happen, Romney would have to best Obama by $39.5 million a month for each of the last four months of the campaign, which is $5 million more than the advantage Romney had in June. An analysis of Federal Election Commission (FEC) disclosure reports starting when Obama and Romney formally disclosed their candidacies running through the end of May 2012, and adding in totals the campaigns have announced for June, shows that Obama and his affiliated groups have raised $552.5 million, compared to Romney's $394.9 million. For Obama, the total includes money from the president's campaign committee (Obama for America), the Democratic National Committee and two joint fundraising committees — Obama Victory 2012 and Swing State Victory Fund. For Romney, the figure includes money from the campaign, the Republican National Committee and Romney Victory Inc., the joint fundraising committee Romney formed in April."
Broadcasters have made an emergency move to try and block a new policy that will require broadcast television stations to disclose their file of political advertising buys online for the first time, ProPublica reports.
Lesbians now have a super PAC, HuffPost reports.
The Romney campaign has made a $5 million ad buy for this week.
Will money really determine who wins in November? The American Prospect's Jamelle Bouie looks into it and the answer is: maybe, around the edges, it could, sort of.
Ever wanted to know all about super PAC don Sheldon Adelson's casino empire in China. Then this New Yorker article is a must read.
American Crossroads, the GOP super PAC, will invest $70 million in Senate races this fall, Roll Call reports.
Romney will raise money in Jerusalem at a $60,000 a head fundraiser, according to the Jerusalem Post.
The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee has invested $2.3 million to help Rep. Shelley Berkley's Senate campaign one day after it was announced that the House Ethics Committee will create a full panel to investigate claims that she used her position to benefit her husband's business.
AD WATCH
Help us populate our list of campaign videos. Send any notable TV, radio or web ads that you see to Fundrace. Send your submissions to paulblumenthal@huffingtonpost.com.
Committee: Barack Obama for President
Candidate Opposed: Mitt Romney
Spot: "Two Plans"
Market: Unknown.
Buy: Undisclosed.
Committee: Mitt Romney for President
Spot (Spanish Language): "Los Invito"
Market: Unknown.
Buy: Undisclosed.
Committee: Barack Obama for President
Candidate Opposed: Mitt Romney
Spot: "Why Would Mitt Romney Invest Millions in the Cayman Islands?"
Market: Unknown.
Buy: Undisclosed.
Committee: Republican National Committee
Candidate Opposed: Barack Obama
Spot: "Barack Obama, Outsourcer-in-Chief"
Market: Unknown.
Buy: Undisclosed.
Committee: SEIU COPE
Candidate Opposed: Mitt Romney
Spot: "Medicare Colorado"
Market: Colorado.
Buy: Undisclosed.
Committee: SEIU COPE
Candidate Opposed: Mitt Romney
Spot: "Foreclosures Nevada"
Market: Nevada.
Buy: Undisclosed.
Committee: SEIU COPE
Candidate Opposed: Mitt Romney
Spot: "Medicare"
Market: Florida.
Buy: Undisclosed.
Committee: American Crossroads
Candidate Opposed: Barack Obama
Spot: "Obama's War on Women"
Market: Unknown.
Buy: Undisclosed.
Committee: Crossroads Generation
Candidate Opposed: Barack Obama
Spot: "Primer on Taxes"
Market: Unknown.
Buy: Undisclosed.
Committee: Jon Tester for Senate
Candidate Opposed: Denny Rehberg
Spot: "Rehberg's Wrong Priorities"
Market: Montana.
Buy: Undisclosed.
Committee: Majority PAC
Candidate Opposed: Rick Berg
Spot: "Changed"
Market: North Dakota.
Buy: Undisclosed.
Committee: Joe Donnelly for Senate
Spot: "Basketball"
Market: Indiana.
Buy: Undisclosed.
Committee: Richard Mourdock for Senate
Spot: "Repeal Obamacare"
Market: Indiana.
Buy: Undisclosed.
Committee: George Allen for Senate
Spot: "Kay"
Market: Virginia.
Buy: Undisclosed.
Committee: Linda McMahon for Senate
Spot: "Struggling"
Market: Connecticut.
Buy: Undisclosed.
Committee: Linda McMahon for Senate
Spot: "Focus"
Market: Connecticut.
Buy: Undisclosed.
Committee: Eric Hovde for Senate
Spot: "Protecting the American Dream: 'Deregulate the Economy'"
Market: Wisconsin.
Buy: Undisclosed.
Committee: American Action Network
Candidate Opposed: Mike Olivero
Spot: "TVAD WV01"
Market: West Virginia's 1st District.
Buy: Undisclosed.
TRACKING INDEPENDENT SPENDING:
These numbers represent spending by independent groups, like super PACs and non-profits, to support or oppose a particular candidate in 2012. Fundrace will update this spending daily to help show which candidates are gaining from the proliferation of independent groups in this coming election.
Presidential Race:
Mitt Romney (R), $7,337,304 to support, $21,239,970 to oppose. (Oppose: +$201,803)
Barack Obama (D), $891,253 to support, $9,731,038 to oppose.
Most Outside Spending for Congressional Candidates:
TX-Senate: Ted Cruz (R), $1,056,303 to support, $2,384,344 to oppose.
TX-Senate: David Dewhurst (R), $536,126 to support, $2,514,378 to oppose.
IN-Senate: Richard Mourdock (R), $1,454,11 to support, $1,280,052 to oppose.
OH-SEN: Josh Mandel (R), $183,235 to support, $1,739,326 to oppose.
IN-Senate: Dick Lugar (R), $208,628 to support, $2,160,814 to oppose.
RECENT INDEPENDENT EXPENDITURES
SEIU COPE, $185,421 to oppose Mitt Romney for President.
League of Conservation Voters, $195 to support Jon Tester for Senate in Montana.
League of Conservation Voters, $41,031 to oppose Denny Rehberg for Senate in Montana.
MoveOn.org Political Action, $16,382 to oppose Mitt Romney for President.
Progress for Washington, $21,328 to oppose Suzan Delbene for Congress in Washington's 1st District.
RECENT POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE REGISTRATIONS
Conservative Majority Fund, Arlington, Va., Treasurer: Scott Mackenzie.
Conservative Majority Super Fund, Arlington, Va., Treasurer: Scott Mackenzie.
Defenders of America, Santa Cruz, Calif., Treasurer: Jonathan Gabriel Wizard. (Super PAC)
South Floridians for Effective Leadership, Tampa, Fla., Treasurer: Tara M. Geise. (Super PAC)
Democrats Against the Reelection of Barack Obama, Seattle, Wash., Treasurer: Keith Binford. (Super PAC)
The United States Youth Caucus, Santa Cruz, Calif., Treasurer: Jonathan Gabriel Wizard. (Super PAC)
Positive Volition, Los Angeles, Calif., Treasurer: Nicholas Sullinger. (Super PAC)
EaglesPAC, Washington, D.C., Treasurer: Dan Backer.
Send tips, hints, submissions, rumors to HuffPost Fundrace at paulblumenthal@huffingtonpost.com.