A little more balm for Team Obama's debate wounds: The campaign pulled in $181 million in contributions in September, the highest monthly total for either side this election, reports the Wall Street Journal. Mitt Romney's campaign hasn't released its numbers yet. The big haul reflects the usual post-convention surge in donations, and campaign chief Jim Messina is highlighting two points: 98% came from contributions of $250 or less, and 567,000 people donated for the first time. Maybe it will lessen the sting of the new New Yorker cover. (More Obama 2012 stories.)