The LA Times’s Top of the Ticket political blog says today:

“Certain numbers keep calling attention to the phenomenon that is Ron Paul.

“The most obvious one, of course, was the more than $4.2 million that his GOP presidential campaign reported raising in a single day via the Internet earlier this month. Last week, other figures stood out: He attracted a crowd of more than 1,000 people in Nevada, and a new poll showed him doubling his support in New Hampshire.

“The survey of likely Republican primary voters by CNN and Manchester, N.H.-based TV station WMUR found that backing for Paul jumped from 4% in a September poll to 8% now. In July, Paul was at 2%; the geometric progression clearly is one the Paul camp wants to see continue.

“Will it? The ’smart’ political money would bet against it. Then again, who would have predicted a few months ago that Paul would be closing in on double digits in a New Hampshire poll?

“Or that Paul would be able to say, as he did last week, that he expects to exceed his 4th quarter $12-million fundraising goal?”