<p><are u="" saying="" an="" assist.="" prof="" with="" funding="" might="" be="" a="" good="" advisor?=""></are></p>
<p>Not necessarily. I'm saying that if an assistant prof has money to support students, then he probably has grant money, which is an important part of getting tenure. (Some assist. profs do ride on grants that the entire department gets, so you can't always be sure of this.) If you have a choice between assistant professors, go with the one who can support the most students.</p>
<p>There are so many politics within academia, however, that if a more senior professor wants to work with you, then you should go with it. A senior name also gives you better leverage in the job market since his recommendation will hold a lot of weight. However, not all students get the opportunity to work with the most famous profs in the department.</p>