$361,000 a day

That's how much Barack Obama's record-breaking campaign raised during the second quarter, according to this analysis by the Campaign Finance Institute. One of the most remarkable things about that number (as we have noted before) is how much of it--roughly one-third--came from small donors, who are not only a measure of early enthusiasm, but also a source that can be tapped again and again:

Obama's $16.4 million in small contributions ($200 or less) puts him ahead of the rest of the Democratic field combined, as well as the entire Republican field combined. But even he has raised three-fifths of his funds in amounts of $1,000 or more.

But in many ways, the real story of the second-quarter was not how much the candidates raised, but what they spent:

During the first six months of 2007, Mitt Romney spent $32.3 million, which was more than Howard Dean spent in all of 2003 ($31.7 million) and almost as much as George W. Bush in all of 2003 ($33.6 million).
Four other candidates spent more than $15 million during the first six months of 2007: Barak [sic] Obama ($22.6 million), John McCain ($21.5 million), Hillary Clinton ($17.9 million) and Rudy Giuliani ($16.9 million). By contrast, only three candidates had exceeded $10 million after three quarters of 2003: George W. Bush ($14.8 million), Howard Dean ($12.9 million) and John Kerry ($12.3 million).