President 2012: Mitch Daniels State PAC Raised More Money Than Other Potential Presidential Candidates

While Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels coyly dodges questions about his presidential intentions, he quietly raised more money for his state political action committee than any other potential 2012 Republican candidate.

According to a new report from the National Institute on Money in State Politics, Daniels’ Aiming Higher state-level PAC raised $2,182,953 in 2010. The next closest total during this time period comes from Mitt Romney’s Free and Strong America PAC, with $1,623,044.

Only two other candidates have raised money via state-level PACs, according to the report: Former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty’s Freedom First PAC, with $337,570 and former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum’s PAC, with a reported $2,250, plus an undetermined amount in Pennsylvania. The four combined to take in over $4.1 million during 2010.

So, when Mitch was asked by the AP about fundraising he replied.

Daniels said the fact that former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, another possible Republican presidential contender, raised more than $10 million in a single day Monday doesn’t add to the pressure on him.

“I guarantee you that if we did it, I think we’d have the best letterhead and plenty of money,” Daniels said. “I just don’t think these things get settled by money. … I think it’s going to be a lot more about the quality of ideas.”

And, the fact that Daniels is being helped by former Florida Governor Jeb Bush in tapping the Bush family of Presidential donors, also does not hurt.

In 2010, Daniels collected money through only one PAC, in his home state of Indiana. Romney, who collected almost $600,000 less than Daniels, registered PACs in Alabama, Michigan and the key primary states of Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina. iWatch News recently reported on Mitch Daniels’ tenure at pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly. His state PAC received at least $80,000 from top Lilly executives in the 2004 and 2008 election cycles.

Under federal election laws, donors can give a maximum of $5,000 a year to a federal PAC. Those rules don’t apply to state-level PACs, and some states allow donors to give massive amounts of money to a candidate of their choice. The development of state level PACs is often seen as a sign of a serious presidential contender. Donors to state level PACs can contribute from all over the country, leading some campaign finance experts to worry that state level PACs create a back door to avoid federal campaign limits.

Daniels is running and believe me the donors are being called.

Wait for the leaks….1….2……3……