Newt Gingrich’s political groups raised nearly $4 million from July through September – a total that dwarfs that of other prospective 2012 GOP presidential hopefuls, but one that comes with a big asterisk.
The bulk of the money raised by the former House speaker, who has insisted he is seriously eying a 2012 campaign for the Republican presidential nomination, came through a political group registered under a section of the tax code – 527 – that allows it to accept unlimited donations from wealthy individuals and corporations.
That gives Gingrich a big advantage over other possible Republican White House hopefuls who use as their primary political vehicles federal political action committees that are barred from accepting contributions from corporations and can only accept contributions from individuals in amounts capped at $5,000 per year.
Gingrich’s 527 group, American Solutions for Winning the Future, in the third quarter accepted contributions of $300,000 from the coal giant Peabody Energy, $150,000 from an executive at Ohio’s American Electric Power and $100,000 from investment magnate Charles Schwab.
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