Casino magnate backing Romney

WASHINGTON – The news that casino magnate Sheldon Adelson is pumping $10 million into a “super PAC” backing Republican presidential challenger Mitt Romney underscores how swiftly this campaign’s state of play can be affected by a single wealthy donor.

The contribution by Adelson comes after he and his family pumped $21.5 million into a super PAC that supported former House Speaker Newt Gingrich during the GOP primaries. The Adelson family effectively subsidized the entire Gingrich super PAC – its contributions made up 89 percent of all the money raised by Winning Our Future.

Now Adelson is poised play a similar role for the former Massachusetts governor. With his check to the pro-Romney Restore Our Future, he instantly skyrocketed to the top of that super PAC’s list of mega-donors.

Romney has courted the Las Vegas Sands chief executive since Gingrich dropped out, meeting with him privately last month during a fundraising trip to Nevada.