Marco Rubio’s “stimulus bomb” is underway — you can watch a live broadcast of the fundraising event here. The Florida Republican hopes to raise $787,000 tonight, and is already inching close to his goal: As of 7:55 p.m., Rubio has banked $665,000.

Sen. Jim DeMint (R., S.C.) is doing what he can to help the cause with his own “Marco Rubio Money Bomb” via the Senate Conservatives Fund, his political-action committee. The SCF originally pledged to raise $100,000 for Rubio, but that number was quickly surpassed — over $125,000 has come in from nearly 3,000 donors. That sum is nearly double the number that the SCF raised for Rubio in all of 2009. As the evening stretches on, DeMint tells National Review Online that the SCF’s new goal for tonight is $150,000.

“Once people see and hear Marco Rubio, they know he’s for real, they know he gets it, and they want to help him become the next senator from Florida,” DeMint says. “It’s remarkable how people have responded and it’s a testament to the awakening that’s taking place across the country. We’re very pleased with the success so far but this primary is not until August and we still have a lot of work to do.”