At yesterday morning's debate on KYW radio, Tom Knox said he planned to cap his campaign spending, believed to be at the $7 million level.
By yesterday afternoon, that statement was inoperative.
The Knox camp made a major buy of TV time -- estimated at $400,000 -- to counter what the Democratic mayoral candidate's campaign manager said was a barrage of anti-Knox ads coming from 527 groups.
As Josh Morrow, Knox's campaign manager told Larry Eichel of the Inquirer: "We have to combat these illegal 527s smearing Tom's name all over town." He was referring to to ads aired this past weekend by political committees formed under Section 527 of the tax code.
The Knox campaign may also be trying to seal the deal with supporters and those leaning to his candidacy by making him an ever-present figure on their TV screens. Knox is taking his advantage -- his personal fortune, which is paying for all these ads -- and playing it to the hilt.
The new $400,000 buy comes on top of a "regular" $348,000 buy Knox had already booked. Add it up and it comes close to $750,000 -- more than double his nearest rival in TV buys, Bob Brady, who's up with a $300,000 buy this week.
If Knox keeps this pace up, he will spend $1.5 million on TV ads in the final two weeks of the campaign,more than most of his opponents spent during the entire campaign.
The question is: Who does it benefit? Knox for one. He is trying to innoculate himself against his rivals by deflecting the attacks back on them. To wit: They are trying to tear him down because they are afraid of his reform agenda.
But, it also could benefit whichever candidate is closest to Knox. Each point Knox slips, each dent his takes in his image, could benefit the No. 2 in the race, as voters search for an alternative to the frontrunner.
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Great Expectations is a civic engagement project brought to you by The Inquirer and the University of Pennsylvania. Check out the Great Expectations Web site.
Chris Satullo is an Inquirer columnist and former editor of The Inquirer's Editorial Page. He was a founder of the Great Expectations project, which focuses on civic engagement and the issues in Philadelphia's 2007 mayoral race.
Tom Ferrick, a former Inquirer reporter, worked on the Great Expectations project throughout 2007 and into 2008.Other members of the Editorial Board will be weighing in on the blog, as will Harris Sokoloff and Jodie Chester Lowe, members of the Great Expectations team.
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