Obama Flexing Financial Muscle With TV Spending

Sen Barack Obama (D-IL) is outspending Sen John McCain (R-AZ) by nearly 3 to 1 on television advertising in the final weeks of the presidential campaign, a financial edge that is almost certainly contributing to the Democrat's momentum in key battleground states. From Sept. 30 to Oct. 6, Obama spent more than $20 million on TV ads in 17 states, including more than $3 million in Pennsylvania alone and more than $2 million each in Florida, Michigan and Ohio. In the same time frame, McCain spent a total of $7.2 million in 15 states. Even including Republican National Committee's $5.3 million in independent expenditures in Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Wisconsin, Obama outspent the combined GOP forces by roughly $8 million in the past week alone.