2008 John McCain: No Money, ‘Mo Problems
posted by on March 3 at 11:58 AM
The estimated campaign contribution totals for the last two months are in, and John McCain may have a serious money problem on his hands:
McCain: $24 million.
Clinon and Obama combined: $130 million
The reaction? Pretty much what you would expect, via the always informative Jonathan Martin:
At this point in the campaign, nothing seems to alarm Republicans more than the incessant sound of ringing cash registers coming from the other party. The jaw-dropping fundraising by Democrats — and Obama in particular — is leading Republican officials both in and out of McCain’s campaign to think that they’ll never be able to match the war chests of their likely rivals. And this from a party that traditionally has pummeled Democrats when it comes to fundraising.
As for the candidate himself? He’s taking it in stride. I guess:
Asked by reporters at a campaign stop here how much he brought in last month, McCain said he was only certain of one thing.“I can assure you it’s not nearly the amount raised by Sen. Obama and Sen. Clinton,” he said with a chuckle. “We’ve got a ways to go to catch up with them.”
A late quote from Rick Perry, Republican governor of Texas, sums up the McCain path to victory over the perceived threat of being outspent by millions from either an Obama or Clinton candidacy:
“There’s a point in time where money is not what matters, ideas are what matters,” Perry said, speaking after a McCain event near Austin. “And I think that’s the big difference — [examining] John McCain and what he believes in versus Obama and his socialist agenda will be a very eye-opening moment for Americans.”
Oh no! The socialist agenda!
Does that mean that John McCain doesn't like medical care for poor kids?
If they get to call the Democrats Socialists, isn't that giving the Dems a free pass to call the Republicans Fascist Warmongering thugs?
It is fantastic that the Democrats are outfundraising the Republicans by a wide margin for a change. But don't get too excited yet.
First, Obama and Clinton are still in a heated primary, and are spending money like mad. McCain can coast through the rest of the primaries, now that all serious competition has bowed out, without spending much money at all. What will become more relevant is who has the most cash on hand after the primaries are over. Who has the most money to spend on the general election. If Obama and Clinton keep spending at the rate they are, whoever is the winner could end up with less cash left over at the end of the primaries than McCain.
Second, while money certainly helps when it comes to buying advertising, money isn't everything. McCain was almost broke a few months back, yet managed to beat out Romney, who was outspending him by a very wide margin. Huckaby too, has managed to do very well in the primaries without spending much money at all. So whoever wins the Democratic primary can't simply outspend McCain, they'll have to out campaign him too.
That being said, it is encouraging to see the Democrats being able to fundraise at this pace. Obama, in particular, is getting a LOT of small donations (vs. Hillary's fewer huge donations), which is significant. That is an indicator that a lot more regular people like him and are inspired enough to donate to his campaign. An indicator that he has a lot of broadbased support.
He'll probably try to turn the negative into a positive and claim that the Dems are raising more money from "special interests." Then he'll position himself as a faux-populist.
It's what the Dems would do if the positions were reversed.
McCain McCan't.
McCain. Ideas. Right. Ideas like "hey, Rick, are my slippers on the wrong feet? I can't tell."
Yeah, but McCain supporters sure can buy a lot of billboards ... sure wish ELF was real and those houses hadn't been burned down for the insurance proceeds by the builder ... and they hated billboards ...
(just wishing is all ...)
The favorable kid glove treatment The "Maverick" gets from the conservative dominated MSM is worth at least a couple of hundred million in campaign contributions.
Socialist?
What a moron. Growing out all that hair must be taking its toll on his brain.
Most Americans are aware of the courageous service John provided as a naval aviator and POW . But few can fully appreciate how bad the egregious hospitality of the Hanoi Hilton was .His main concerns were for other POWs’ life threatening conditions and how he could help them.
To this day John’s truthfulness, dedication and what he believes in is demonstrated by his sincere actions and service as a Senator of the United States of America. We could do a whole lot worse than vote for John Mc Cain and with your help the next president of the United States.
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