Paul hitting Nevada airwaves

Rep. Ron Paul, whose enthused supporters have made him one of the cycle's best-funded Republican candidates, is pouring cash into an unusual, early television advertising buy in Nevada, according to a media buying source.

Paul will spend $120,000 in the Reno and Las Vegas media markets for an ad buy that begins tomorrow and runs through July 21, Thursday.

Nevada's caucuses come early in the 2012 Republican nomination contest, but haven't historically played a crucial role. They fell on the same day in 2008 as the South Carolina Republican Primary, and were ignored by many candidates, though Mitt Romney, who campaigned in Nevada and relied on well-organized Mormon support, won them handily with 51% of the vote.

Paul -- who saw little electoral success elsewhere -- delighted supporters by finishing 2nd with 14 percent of the total votes in Nevada, squeaking past the party's eventual nominee, John McCain.

Paul is also on the air in Iowa in advance of that state's straw poll, but it's unclear what's driving the timing of his advertising in Nevada, and the news prompted some head-scratching among observers. The media consultant who noted the early buy to POLITICO labeled it "total highway robbery by [Paul's] media team"

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