President 2012: After Christie Opts Out Romney Picks Up Donors
Republican presidential candidate and former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney speaks at a town hall meeting at the New Hampshire Institute of Politics at Saint Anselm College in Goffstown, New Hampshire September 28, 2011
Gov. Chris Christie’s decision not to seek the Republican nomination for president is turning out to be quite the boon to Mitt Romney’s campaign coffers.
Late Wednesday, Mr. Romney won the support of uber GOP donor Paul Singer, who was considered to be one of the most sought-after undecided Republican fund-raisers. In the 2010 election season, Mr. Singer and his employees at Elliott Management donated $2.6 million to the Republican Governors Association, making the hedge fund’s employees the second-largest corporate donor of the campaign cycle.
In a letter, Mr. Singer called Mr. Romney “the best choice” among Republican candidates. He said his debate performances have been “impressive–fluid and at times commanding.”
Mr. Singer added, “of supreme importance–Mitt Romney can defeat the incumbent president, a task that is a matter of urgency to me and of keen importance to the country.”
Mr. Singer moved to Mr. Romney’s camp on the same day that a number of other top Republican fund-raisers came off the fence and pledged their support.
Mr. Singer’s support of Mr. Romney isn’t surprising, given that some on Wall Street have had trouble connecting with rival Rick Perry, the Texas governor.
Prominent hedge-fund manager Daniel Loeb has decided to back Mr. Romney, according to people familiar with the matter, while a number of other key figures in the hedge-fund world are said to be making up their minds about who they will support. That list includes fund managers such as Cliff Asness, Steven Cohen, Ken Griffin, and Leon Cooperman. Anthony Scaramucci, who is raising money for Mr. Romney on Wall Street, said he expects many of the key financiers to support his candidate, “whether it’s today, two months from today, or nine months from today.
This is not really surprising since Mitt Romney is the safe, “do no harm” Republican candidate. America and the GOP desperately need a “WIN” in November 2012 and with the field settled, it looks like the BIG money is following Mitt Romney.