Ron Paul Campaign Raises Mind Blowing $4 Mil in One Day: Nearing $8 Mil for QuarterThey say money changes everything and in the case of the 2008 US Presidential race, the amount of money raised by one so-called "third tier" candidate could change the entire face of the political landscape as Ron Paul supporters managed to reel in over $4 million in a 24 hour period.
The most successful fundraising day ever is John Kerry's $5.7 million. And that was on the day he accepted the Democratic nomination.
Ron Paul's website includes a counter that supposedly measures donations in real time as they are coming in. But rumors abounded that the counter could not even keep up with the money flow. By Tuesday morning, those rumors may have proven true as the campaign appeared to generate another million on top of the $3 mil plus brought in on Monday alone.
The Ron Paul donation frenzy was the result of one man's push to bring in $10 million from supporters all in a single day - November 5. While falling far short of that aggressive $10 mil goal, the amount raised is still unprecedented. And to think that Ron Paul's campaign itself had nothing to do with this historic record shattering event speaks volumes.
"It was after Midnight Eastern Time and the money raised was still going up in $5,000 increments per hour," pointed out Gambling911.com resident political analyst, Jennifer Reynolds. "They got 7k in one spectacular minute.
"We are witnessing history. I wish we could find out what the total number of donors was in a day. I am sure we shattered that record. Those big figures are from corporations giving tons of money. No candidate has ever had a day anywhere close to this."
For online poker players, Ron Paul's Presidential bid would almost certainly result in the legalization, licensing and regulation of online poker rooms operating within the United States. Presently, Internet poker sites must operate from outside the US in places like Malta, Antigua, Costa Rica, Gibraltar, and Great Britain.
“I believe strongly that the internet should not be regulated by the federal government and believes even more strongly that people should be free to engage in the activities they wish, as long as they are willing to take responsibility for their actions," Dr. Paul told Gambling911.com's Kira Wissman in an exclusive interview this summer.
And at this rate, Paul could end up in the White House come January 2009.
Jesse Benton, the campaign's communications director, told CBSNews.com. The site, Remember The 5th Of November, encouraged giving to Paul's campaign on the day that marks one year to go until the election and, as fans of English history will know, the anniversary of Guy Fawkes' foiled 1605 plot to blow up Parliament – an incident also referenced in the graphic novel and film "V For Vendetta."
Benton assured CBSNews.com, however, that Paul has no designs on blowing up Congress. "We might like to tear down the Department of Education, but we can do that very peacefully," he said.
Gambling911.com has been following and covering the Ron Paul campaign for several months now while much of the mainstream press has continued to ignore the Internet phenom candidate.
"The gambling websites are rarely wrong when it comes to political outcomes," comments Gambling911.com Senior Editor, Payton O'Brien, who was earlier quoted in a piece for Chief Executive Magazine. "They had him at 6 to 1 odds of winning, ahead of Mitt Romney. These odds are reflective of real money coming in from real supporters."
O'Brien acknowledged that Gambling911.com's extensive focus on the Ron Paul campaign has been met with explosive traffic from his supporters while few diehard G911 fans have objected to the coverage.
"We have fielded calls and emails from a handful of people who mostly have expressed disbelief that Ron Paul could be listed with such short odds of 6 to 1."
Gambling911.com has a knack for trend-setting in recent years. In 2002, the site began promoting an unknown entrepreneur by the name of Calvin Ayre. The website was laughed at and tormented for well over a year.
"Who is this arrogant ****ing ***ck and why do you keep promoting his no-name sportsbook?" asked one operator at the time. His question was asked by many of his colleagues in various forms though they all seemed to use the term "arrogant ****ing ***ck". That unknown arrogant ****ing ***ck would eventually land on the cover of Forbes 2006 Billionaire's issue. Forbes even harped back to the days when Ayre had to play an Indiana Jones-like character by the name of Cole Turner in order to gain attention. Today Ayre gets more women than Harrison Ford in his younger years.
In 2005, Gambling911.com began promoting American Idol betting. Bookies laughed this new trend off at first until the millions of dollars in bets started rolling in. Today, American Idol has become the biggest non-sporting event bet on.
For Gambling911.com Political Analyst and September's Playboy Babe of the Month, Carrie Stroup, the Ron Paul promotions have left the folks at Sportsbook.com without words. In just a matter of months, they were forced to slash odds on Paul becoming the next President from 200-1 all the way to 6-1.
"Ron Paul fans were flocking to the Sportsbook.com website, offering their devout support for their favorite candidate," Stroup said.
Ron Paul supporters hope that this trend continues. So far, it does.
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Christopher Costigan, Gambling911.com Publisher
Originally published November 6, 2007 9:52 am ET
