Correction: The National Republican Senatorial Committee last week said it raised $6 million in April and has almost $19.3 million saved in the bank. Associated Press articles that ran in editions on Tuesday and Wednesday erroneously reported how much cash the committee had on hand, relying on a summary of the fundraising reports provided by a committee spokesman.
WASHINGTON -- A well-funded independent political machine with ties to Republican strategist Karl Rove on Monday signaled that it was ready to spend almost $15 million on ads in four states with competitive Senate races -- spending that is expected to rise.
The American Crossroads super political action committee and its affiliated nonprofit, Crossroads GPS, bought $9.4 million in ad time in North Carolina, Colorado, Alaska and Arkansas between now and August. The groups also reserved $5.5 million more in Alaska for late-fall ads.
The heavy spending was seen as certain to help Republicans, who need to win six seats to capture the Senate majority. It was also a sign that outside groups -- and their deep-pocketed patrons -- would hold huge sway over November's elections.
The Crossroads ads were set to start today in North Carolina, where almost $3.5 million will be spent on a two-month blitz against Sen. Kay Hagan, one of the Democrats' most vulnerable incumbents. In Colorado, where Democratic Sen. Mark Udall faces a challenge from Republican Rep. Cory Gardner, $2.3 million was set for ads starting a month later.
In Arkansas, where Sen. Mark Pryor faces a challenge from Republican Rep. Tom Cotton, the super PAC planned to spend $880,000 on ads starting June 3. Crossroads GPS was set to start spending $875,000 on ads a week later.
The nonprofit arm, which does not disclose its donors, plans a $900,000 ad blitz starting June 6 against Alaska Sen. Mark Begich, an incumbent Democrat whom Republicans see as vulnerable. American Crossroads, which does disclose its donors, also reserved $5.5 million for Alaska ads from Sept. 8 through Oct. 26.
"Karl Rove's dark-money special-interest group spent $63 million last cycle in contested Senate races and the effort was a colossal failure, as they lost almost every single one," Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee spokesman Justin Barasky said.
Barasky said the spending was designed to promote an "anti-middle-class agenda aimed at benefiting billionaire special interests."
American Crossroads spent heavily on races in 2012 and came up short: 11 of the 13 Senate races where it spent money were won by Democrats, and GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney failed to defeat President Barack Obama.
In all, American Crossroads spent more than $116 million between Jan. 1, 2011, and Dec. 31, 2012. During the peak of the 2012 campaign, American Crossroads spent $42 million between Oct. 18, 2012, and Nov. 26, 2012.
But the group largely went dark in 2013 and spent just $600,000 during the first three months of 2014.
After a stretch of anemic fundraising, the American Crossroads raised more cash in March than it did during the previous 14 months combined to help establishment-minded candidates. That month the group took in almost $5.2 million and reported it had more than $6.3 million in the bank.
That haul came from three organizations and 21 individuals. The largest donation -- $2 million -- came from former Univision owner Jerry Perenchio. A trust tied to Oklahoma coal executive Joseph Craft III gave $500,000, as did Arkansas-based investment manager Warren Stephens and Kentucky-based self-storage mogul B. Wayne Hughes.
Aides cautioned that its April fundraising would not be as impressive.
The group got its start under veteran GOP strategists Rove and Ed Gillespie, who is now running for the Senate in Virginia. Its leaders now include Steven Law, a former executive at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and Carl Forti, a former adviser to Romney and Capitol Hill Republicans.
It is seen as one of establishment Republicans' favorite outside groups because of Rove's reputation as President George W. Bush's political adviser and his consistent presence as a pundit on Fox News Channel.
In other fundraising news, the Senate campaign arm of the Democratic Party picked up $6.3 million in April and has $25 million saved in the bank.
The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee on Monday released a summary of last month's fundraising and noted that it again had outraised its Republican rival. The Democrats' committee is debt-free.
The National Republican Senatorial Committee last week said it raised $6 million in April and has almost $22 million saved in the bank. The Republican group also has no debt.
Additionally, the House Democrats' campaign arm announced raising $7.1 million in April and having more than $43 million in the bank.
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee's report released Monday is the first since the Supreme Court ended cumulative limits on how much money individual donors can give.
Previously, donors were limited to $123,200 in all federal giving, forcing fundraisers to strategically pick committees and candidates with the best shots of victory. Donors can now give the maximum individual amounts to as many candidates and committees as they want.
House Democrats began April with a $9 million advantage over their Republican counterparts.
The National Republican Congressional Committee has until today to release its April fundraising numbers.
A Section on 05/20/2014
