GOP hopefuls would need $590,000 a day to match Obama’s 2008 fundraising pace

Here's an eye-popping stat that could make the 2012 GOP presidential hopefuls a little nervous: Barack Obama raised $59 million for his presidential campaign during the first half of 2007. As Bloomberg News's Jonathan Salant writes, Obama's prospective GOP challengers would have to raise $590,000 a day between now and June 30 to match that pace during this campaign.

While Obama hasn't yet ramped up his 2012 re-election bid, the president is likely to put up a huge fund-raising number this summer. Last week, the Obama campaign team asked the president's biggest financial supporters to raise at least $350,000 ahead of next year's presidential election--$100,000 apiece more than during the 2008 campaign.

(Photo of Obama at a DNC fundraiser in 2010: Brendan Hoffman/Getty Images)