Obama Outspends Republican Campaigns by Millions With Republicans locked in a contentious and expensive primary, President Barack Obama has spent a small fortune in recent months to build and maintain a campaign operation that is larger, more diverse and more focused on November's general election than any of his opponents' organizations. Republican contenders like Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum have surely been watching their expenses during their primary elections: millions here for ad spending, millions there for travel, rallies and consulting fees. What's left keeps the lights on, the phones ringing and the staff paid. But Obama, who faces no serious challenger for the Democratic nomination, has sunk his cash into an expansive brick-and-mortar operation with offices in nearly every state. His campaign has spent more than $135 million on operations through February, according to an Associated Press analysis of Federal Election Commission records. That's about $3 million more than all his GOP challengers combined. Republicans bristle over reports that Obama's paid staff exceeds 500, many of whom work in the campaign's Chicago headquarters. "I think the campaign is single-handedly trying to lower the unemployment rate by hiring field staff," Romney political director Rich Beeson said. When they point to the fact about how many people they've got hired and how many offices they've got, they're just trying to distract people from the reality of (how) they're going to have a heck of a time finding people to get out and vote for him. A review of Obama's balance sheets reveals a small army of paid staffers trying to help the Democratic president win a second term. Campaign filings list more than 330 paid staffers in Chicago and 200 more spread across the country - payroll costs that exceed $6.3 million during the last two months alone. The numbers also suggest signs of stress. Obama's team has spent more than $7 million since January on fundraising-related expenses like postage, printing and telemarketing, in some cases to contact the same kind of low-dollar donors who supported Obama four years ago. The campaign also spent millions more on expenses like online advertising and consulting, which in some cases can be tied to fundraising. With offices in nearly every state, the campaign also faces rising overhead. Through the first two months of the year, Obama spent approximately $1.1 million on computer equipment, $435,000 in rent and utilities, $305,000 on telephones, and $19,000 on office supplies, federal filings show. "We're building the largest grass-roots campaign in history," campaign spokesman Ben LaBolt said. You can see it here, but it's really happening in the states. The core of Obama's operation is packed into the sixth floor of Chicago's Prudential building, where 300 staffers sit side by side at long rows of tables, working from laptops and cellphones. Colorful college pennants hang from the ceiling and often represent key swing states: the University of North Carolina, Ohio State and the University of Michigan. Need a designer T-shirt or bumper sticker? A room managed by two staffers houses a swelling collection of campaign memorabilia for sale.