romney superpacMitt Romney was already likely to outraise many of his rivals for the Republican presidential nomination. Now several of his key backers have created a "super PAC" to further boost the GOP frontrunner's bid for the White House.
The Restore our Future PAC aims to raise millions of dollars in unlimited, unregulated contributions to aid Romney's bid, according to the Washington Post's Dan Eggen and Chris Cillizza.
Romney's campaign is barred from coordinating with the group--which is being guided by several of his former top advisers, including GOP strategist Carl Forti, his 2008 political director.
"This is an independent effort focused on getting Romney elected president," Charles R. Spies, a former Romney aide who serves as the PAC's treasurer, tells the Post.
The PAC is modeling itself after the so-called "shadow GOP" groups that raised tens of millions of dollars to boost conservative candidates in the 2010 campaign. Indeed, Forti is also a top adviser to American Crossroads, a leading shadow GOP group that spent millions to help elect Republican candidates during the midterms and has announced plans to spend at least $100 million to influence the 2012 elections.
Organizers tell the Post they launched the group to go "head to head" with Priorities USA Action, a political committee launched by former aides to President Obama to help boost his 2012 re-election. As The Ticket previously reported, the group launched an ad attacking Romney last month.
But in what could be a scary development for Romney's Republican rivals, RFP's advisers admit the group is also willing to come to Romney's defense during the GOP primary.
(Photo of Romney: Ed Andrieski/AP)