Posted on 07/25/2006 6:21:45 PM PDT by dangus
Herb Kohl (D-WI) is going broke. He has spent nearly $2.9 million already. His campaign is in debt $4.7 million, although that debt presumably is money he has lent his campaign from his personal fortune. He has raised $4.8 million, although I don’t know how much of that is his personal fortune, or whether his debts are from previous campaigns. He has less than $2 million in the bank. He doesn’t have an official opponent, yet. I know Wisconsin Freepers have told me to write this race off, but if Kohl’s fundraising is that poor, I suspect there will be a race.
Why hasn’t Maria Cantwell (D-WA) posted her FEC report, yet? As of the end of March, she had received $8.6 million this cycle. She had spent $3.5 million. She had $5.6 million cash-on-hand, but also owed almost exactly $2.4 million. News reports say she now has $6.4 million on hand. Her opponent Michael McGavick has spent almost as much (only about $130,000 less) than Sen. Cantwell, but raised only $4.4 million, leaving him $1.1 million cash-on-hand. If he needs to, he can loan his campaign some money, so this race will be competitive. McGavick repeatedly has polled only a few (4) points down.
This needs pointing out: Ed LaMont (CT) has spent $2.5 million to his own campaign. Nonetheless, he only has $276,000 left. Joe Lieberman who now reports $4.3 million on hand. If LaMont wins the Democratic primary, it’ll be Joe Lieberman, running as an Independent, who will have the clear cash advantage. Would the DSCC spend money on LaMont to run against a Democrat?
Sen. George Allen (R-VA) is rolling in plenty of dough, $6.6 million. His opponent is not, having spent about 2/3rds of the paltry $1.1 million he has raised. Allen’s fundraising abilities will inevitably spark further suggestions that he run for President.
Rep. Harold Ford (D-TN) has spent huge money ($3.3 million), despite no serious primary competition and modest fundraising ($4.5 million). With $4.2 million cash-on-hand, the very much Freeper-hated Bob Corker could roll him. Not to make financial viability an issue in the primary, because Ed Bryant and Van Hilleary should each be financially healthy.
Sen. Linc Chafee (R-RI) has spent 2 ½ times more money than primary challenger Steve Laffey, but Laffey’s cash-on-hand tally is quite competitive with Chafee’s, having about a third of a million less than Chafee’s $1.3 million. Pathetically, Chafee trails his Democratic challenger (Sheldon Whitehouse) in funds by 40 percent, and his challenger is leading him in the polls.
Sen. Richard (!) Michael DeWine (R-OH) leads his challenger, Sherrod Brown, in cash on hand by about $3 million ($6.6 million to $3.7 million), and is fundraising almost twice as quickly. Brown should be able to be competitive, but DeWine is looking quite healthy.
Hillary! Clinton (D-NY) has raised $33 million, and has already spent an amazing $17 million. She has $22 million on hand. Do you remember when they said that the ante for the Democratic nomination in 2004 was $25 million? Guess she’d have no problem there. Not that I’m predicting she runs.
Claire McCaskill’s challenge to Jim Talent (R-MO) seems to be running dry. She raised only $1.5 million, although managed to keep most of it in the bank. Talent leads McCaskill, $7.12 million to $2.78 million.
Ben Nelson (D-NE) has a 2-1 cash-on-hand advantage over challenger Pete Ricketts, who has been spending money like a beltway incumbent ($6.3 million!), and who has nothing to show for it in the polls.
Conrad Burns (R-MT) leads his challenger, Jon Tester by a 4:1 ratio. That figure does not include Tester’s recent national fundraising event, but, then again, the media’s talk about it was much greater before he held it than afterwards, so it may not have been wildly successful, I suppose. But that’s uninformed speculation on my part.
Mark Kennedy (R-MN) is edging out Amy Klobuchar for Mark Dayton’s (D) seatin cash on hand. He has $4.1 million; she has $3.5 million.
Michael Steele (R-MD) has a healthy fundraising edge over Ben Cardin, $3 million to $2.3 million. Not bad in such a blue state. Of course, Cardin is struggling in the polls against the nearly broke Kweisi (“Queasy”) Mfume. (By broke, I mean financially, not just spiritually.)
Of course Ted Kennedy has oodles of money ($8.8 million) for a race against no-one. Ever wonder what candidates spend their money on when they have no opposition?
Bill Nelson (D-FL) was amazingly rich after March, with over $10.3 million on hand. Katherine Harris has less money on hand ($2.6 million) than she owes ($3.4 million), although she owes it to herself.
John Kyl (R-AZ) outfunds his opponent by better than 4-to-1, $7.1 million to $1.7 million.
The bad news: the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee leads the Republican one, $37.7 million to $19.9 million. Maybe Republican donors have become fed up with the National Republican Senatorial Committee giving all their money to protect liberals?
(No specifics yet out of Pennsylvania or New Jersey, but Santorum (R-PA) is doing very well financially; Kean (R-NJ) may be struggling. That comment on Kean reflects no available information, not a suggestion that he is struggling.)
Good info. Thanks much.
Six years ago when Kennedy ran against a vegetarian Libertarian, he spend his money on trips to France and Italy where he entertained contributors to the DNC.
For the record, Kennedy does have an opponent, a guy named Ken Chase, a Republican with a legal immigrant (and now U.S. citizen) wife. Chase is an educator--perhaps the only Republican educator in Massghanistan--who believes we need to dismantle the current educational "system" and rebuild it as too many towns in Massghanistan are spending $2 out of every $3 dollars in their budgets allegedly on education--at least that's what people think until they look at the School Budget and notice all the expenditures that add little to the education of our children.
Good job. Give yourself an attaboy
ATTABOY.
Why has no one heard of Ken Chase? I am glad to hear the despicable teddy has a challenger. C'mon Mass, stand up and vote the bum out.
I did know about Chase. Sadly, he's not really an opponent, so much as a name to fill the blank with for the Republican Establishment. As much as I like him, they'd've nominated Alan Keyes over him, if Alan felt like moving again.
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