McCain's Money

Jay has this week's cover story on John McCain's emergence from the political tomb. Where do you go when you've already come back from the dead? Florida, of course.

In a dead heat with Mitt Romney in the polls here in the Sunshine state, McCain faces the first state which can't be won with town halls and bus tours: Larger and more diverse -- and more disbursed -- than the states he's already won, Florida is a state won largely on the airwaves. And for that, you need money. And, for the first time, McCain has some.

Campaign sources point Senior aide Mark Salter points to a million dollar fundraiser in New York, in addition to about five million raised since January 1. Will this be enough to keep them competitive? There are still four long days until the election, and this is still pocket change to Mitt -- or maybe it's pocket change to his grandson Parker.* They have a better ad ratio to Mitt than ever, but advertising also matters more than ever.

* Romney's stump speech includes a jokey story about the joys of becoming a grandfather, in which he recounts how, after he became a grandfather he went to his lawyer and told him he'd like to change his will. Initially, he said, he was going to leave everything to his sons. He tells the lawyer he'd like to include his grandchildren now. "And what percentage do you want to leave to your grandchildren?" asks the lawyer. "You don't understand," Romney says, "I want to leave it all to my grandchildren. My boys can make their own money."

Funny because it's true!

UPDATE: The campaign Senior aide Mark Salter says the most recent figure for the month is around $7m, more than they raised all of last quarter.