Rick Santorum has brought on a new team of political fundraisers, Republican sources told CNN, one of the surest signs to date that the former Pennsylvania senator plans to mount a second presidential bid after his unsuccessful and under-funded 2012 campaign.
Santorum, who convened a meeting with his inner circle in Washington last week to walk through the details of another presidential campaign, has hired a finance team for Patriot Voices, his political action committee.
The PAC officials will transition into similar roles on a presidential campaign, a GOP source familiar with the moves told CNN.
Rob Bickhart, a former Republican National Committee finance director and longtime Santorum associate, will serve as finance director for Patriot Voices and will hold the same title if Santorum runs for president.
Santorum has also tapped Roy Jones as a senior adviser for fundraising. Jones has political experience dating back to the 1992 Bush-Quayle campaign but has lately specialized in fundraising for Liberty University, the Christian-oriented institution in Virginia, as well as the Russ Reid Agency, a fundraising agency that serves nonprofits and religious charities.
Nadine Maenza, Santorum’s chief fundraiser in 2012, remains on the team as executive director of Patriot Voices.
The GOP mega-donor Foster Friess, Santorum’s biggest financial patron during his cash-strapped 2012 campaign, hosted a meeting for the potential candidate and some of his top supporters in Arizona last weekend to game out the next campaign.
And Santorum told Politico over the weekend that he would but a greater focus on the money chase if he launches another campaign.
“Well obviously we’d have a lot more money, a bigger organization and a stronger focused message,” he said.