The chairman of Freedom's Defense Fund says his group has about one-third of its $250,000 commitment to the Missouri Senate race in the bank, and will need to raise the rest before election day.
"We're continuously raising money," said Michael Centanni, chairman of the committee. "The last couple of months before an election is the best time to raise money."
Centanni said his group will buy broadcast time in the state but likely won't be involved in direct mail.
"We're going in here and supporting a very conservative, real conservative guy," he said, referring to Rep. Todd Akin, the GOP senate nominee in the state. "I think a lot of the establishment guys that pulled away from him back in August, hopefully this will give them a little bit of a nudge."
Centanni said he made the decision after hearing Akin speak. By law the committee can't directly co-ordinate its activities with the Akin campaign.
The group is connected with controversial conservative author Jerome Corsi, who has written articles and books claiming President Barack Obama isn't a U.S. citizen. Corsi also wrote "Unfit for Command," a book critical of Sen. John Kerry's service in Vietnam, during the 2004 presidential election.
The group paid Corsi $33,000 in consulting fees in 2007 and 2008, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.
Corsi writes often for World Net Daily. Activist and Akin supporter Phyllis Schlafly also writes for WND.
Freedom's Defense Fund also worked against Mitt Romney during the primary season. Its website shows it supported Rick Santorum.
If the group has $250,000 much to invest in the race, it will have raised virtually all of it in the last 60 days, federal records suggest.
As of July 18, Freedom's Defense Fund had $128,148 cash on hand, according to FEC records. But it also owed $116,064, leaving roughly $12,000 in the bank.
The group has been able to raise almost $2.4 million in the 2012 cycle, the records show. Of that, $1.8 million came from "unitemized donors," those giving less than $200.
That suggests -- if the group has $250,000 for the Missouri race -- that it has been able to raise substantial cash in July, August, and September from smaller donors.
The records do not show any contributions from corporations, labor groups, or non-profit 501(c)(4)s.
Records also show the group paid a $3,700 fine this year to the Federal Election Commission for failing to properly file spending reports in 2008.
FEC records show Freedom's Defense Fund spent much of its money not on television ads but on direct mail. So if it spends in the Missouri race, it could show up in mailboxes as well as TV screens.
