McCaskill, outside groups still far outspending Akin and supporters

The Kansas City Star

Now or Never PAC now says it will spend $1 million on behalf of Republican Rep. Todd Akin, by far the biggest outside expenditure on his behalf since the primary.

As we reported earlier today, some of the PAC's money comes from Rex Sinquefield, but most of it comes from a non-profit called Americans for Limited Government, which need not disclose its donors.

Democrats have complained throughout the day about the last-minute outside money for Akin. Some have complained about reports that the Missouri Republican Party will spend around $700,000 for Akin, with some of the funds rumored to come from either the Republican National Committee or the National Republican Senatorial Committee.

The $700K hasn't been reported to the FEC, and there's no direct evidence yet that the RNC or NRSC is behind the spending.

Even with a $700,000 buy, though, Sen. Claire McCaskill still has an enormous spending edge over Akin, with around 96 hours before before Election Day.

Outside groups have spent $7.5 million on McCaskill's behalf, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. Outside groups have spent just $2.4 million on Akin's behalf in the same period.

And of course McCaskill has far more money than Akin in her own committee. She's raised $15.8 through the end of September, compared with Akin's $3.8 million.

So the total:

$23.3 million for McCaskill

$6.2 million for Akin

That means McCaskill still has a 4-to-1 spending advantage over Akin, even with the last-minute money on his side.

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