Presidential candidate Paul raises more than $4.2 million in one day

WASHINGTON (AP) — Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul has hauled in more than $4.2 million in nearly 24 hours. He did it with an extraordinary outpouring of Internet support.

Paul’s total deposed Mitt Romney as the single-day fundraising record holder in the Republican presidential field. When it comes to sums amassed in one day, Paul now ranks only behind Democrats Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama.

Paul is the Texas congressman with a Libertarian tilt and an out-of-Iraq pitch. He entered heady fundraising territory with a surge of Web-based giving tied to the commemoration of Guy Fawkes Day.

Fawkes was a British mercenary who failed in his attempt to kill King James I on November 5th, 1605. He also was the model for the protagonist in the movie “V for Vendetta.” Paul backers motivated donors on the Internet with mashed-up clips of the film on YouTube as well as the Guy Fawkes Day refrain: “Remember, remember the 5th of November.”