Romney said he was not concerned about the voters knowing how much he has spent. But he doesn't want his opponents in the race to know, he said.

"We have some competitive information we make sure that we use for our own benefit," Romney said.

Romney noted that he has raised more money than any other candidate and acknowledged he has dipped into his own fortune for the campaign.

"I can't imagine having gone to my friends and asked them to do what they've done, going out and raising money in my behalf, without saying I'm going to put some of my contribution behind this effort as well," Romney said, "because frankly, I think it's important."

Romney said he is using his own money because he is concerned about the "America my kids will inherit and their kids will inherit and the kids of the entire nation will inherit.

"I happen to think that at a time like this, we need someone whose life has been in the private sector, who knows how America works, not just how Washington works, but how America works. And for that reason, I'm giving it my all," Romney said.

The race in Florida is close. Fox News reported Thursday that a Mason-Dixon survey of 400 likely Republican voters had Romney at 30 percent compared to McCain's 26 percent. Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani is at 18 percent and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee is at 15 percent. The survey was taken Jan. 22-23.

On the Democratic side, a Jan. 21-23 survey of 400 likely Democratic Florida voters showed Hillary Clinton pulling 47 percent of the vote to Barack Obama's 25 percent. Former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards was a distant third with 16 percent.

Both surveys had a 5 percent margin of error.

At a pre-debate rally, Romney seemed confident he would take the Sunshine State. "If they are shooting at me, that means I'm the guy they are worried about, and with good reason," he said. "We are going to win Florida."

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E-mail: suzanne@desnews.com