McCain’s first quarter fundraising tanks
posted at 4:39 pm on April 2, 2007 by Allahpundit
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Here’s what Hotline predicted for the GOP a few days ago:
Romney: $19M-$21M. Actual figure: $23M (including a $2.35M loan he made to the campaign).
Giuliani: $12M-$15M. Actual figure: $15M, including $10M in March after he joined the race in earnest.
McCain: $18M-$22M. Actual figure: …$12.5M. The good news is, he actually had many more donations than Romney did. The bad news is … well, the bad news is just all kinds of bad. Where are all the big conservative donors on the Straight Talk Express? McCain’s big draw is that he’s supposed to be electable: more socially conservative than Rudy, more experienced than Mitt, a war hero capable of attracting independents, etc. How did he end up behind Rudy when Rudy’s only been running for two months? Is it just that no one’s excited about him anymore?
His guy’s pulling three percent in some polls right now so I’m going to give Barnett a platform to exult for once:
[A]s a Romney supporter, I’ll appraise today’s developments as two pieces of really good news and one piece of non-news. The first piece of good news is that these numbers buttress the argument that I’ve long made that people who get to know Romney (like I did long ago) find him incredibly impressive. Extrapolating this out to the distant days when Americans actually head to the ballot box, if the country gets to know him the way his supporters have, he’ll be hard to beat.
The other piece of good news, as mentioned above, is that Romney is proving to be innovative and dynamic at this part of presidential campaigning. At the risk of gushing, Romney’s numbers are fairly remarkable for a guy who’s still unknown to most of the country and in single digits in the polls. The hope here in the heart of Romney country is that the fund-raising innovations and prowess will ultimately be reflected in all aspects of the campaign.
Which sort of leads us to the piece of non-news: The money in itself means very little. This quarter’s numbers were a hurdle the candidates had to get over to be able to run a legitimate campaign. All the top tier candidates, even McCain with his disappointing results, sailed over the hurdle with ease.
Hillary raked in $26 million to lead everyone but Obama’s people haven’t released his numbers yet, possibly to build anticipation for a dramatic announcement. Some rumors say $21M, some say much more than that. Hotline even gives him an outside shot of topping Hillary, which would be an atomic bombshell. Can it happen? Barry O, outpacing the Clinton machine?
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Heh, caption to that pic of Hillary:
RELINQUISH YOUR SOUL, MORTAL!!!!!!!
Bad Candy on April 2, 2007 at 4:41 PM
He was popular for being a maverick in the MSM. He thought the more he bucked the Republican leadership, the more popular he would become. It backfired.
I wonder if he will get bitter and accept a VP nomination by Hillary. He said he had been considering one by John Kerry.
januarius on April 2, 2007 at 4:45 PM
Good.
BirdEye on April 2, 2007 at 4:49 PM
Way to go Mitt.
Zetterson on April 2, 2007 at 4:54 PM
That pic is awesome…sending to V the K now for submissions!
MT on April 2, 2007 at 4:56 PM
Fred GET IN WHILE THE MONEY IS STILL OUT THERE!!!! Timing is one thing for the polls and this year is dangerous for getting in too soon, but unlike most election seasons, the money is also coming out early. The movers and the shakers have their budget and it won’t last long.
- The Cat
MirCat on April 2, 2007 at 4:59 PM
HAHA!!
If I had any photoshop skills I would make the picture look like she was actually sucking the soul out. Someone that does have photoshop skills, make it happen.
Theworldisnotenough on April 2, 2007 at 5:01 PM
Classic Hillary pic. If Barry trumps Hill, it will be monumental.
Just pray some big donors are keeping their powder dry for Fred! or Newt. It will be all over on Super Duper Tuesday (Feb. 5) and the clock is ticking.
Valiant on April 2, 2007 at 5:01 PM
If McCain’s fundraising still lags, he’ll go the third party route. He knows the press will love him as a maverick candidate.
Labamigo on April 2, 2007 at 5:15 PM
Lauraw’s got a caption contest at Ace’s.
And if you go over there, I said the same line.
Bad Candy on April 2, 2007 at 5:18 PM
You know, if Hillary gets trumped by Barry things could get quite interesting. Remember all the bad things Hillary said about Jews behind closed doors? What if someone catches her using the N word? Could you imagine the fallout?
If the MSM doesn’t blackball it, that is.
jaleach on April 2, 2007 at 5:25 PM
This story is a blessing in disguise for everyone concerned.
Obviously, McCain is tanking because he’s sold the GOP out so many times in the past, and is widely considered by conservative insiders to be a RINO. Fortunately, Hagel has come along to take the brunt of much of that anger, and to at least some extent Johhny Mac again looks like the All-American boy.
Moreover, core Republicans fundamentally like McCain, if only for his military experience, and since he supports Bush in Iraq, he seems to have wandered (more or less) back to the conservative reservation now that he’s running for President. Again, McCain owes thanks to Hagel for being such an insufferable turncoat.
Moreover, while McCain may be misguided in his policies (esp. campaign finance reform) and overly magnaminous toward the backstabbing left, he isn’t silly or frivolous. To the contrary, he sees himself as a serious man, thus minimizing the possibility of an awkward third-party run.
Put it all together and it looks to me — at this point, anyway — like Giuliani / McCain in ‘08, especially if W will publicly flatter the Maverick after Rudy dispatches Fred! and Mitt in the primaries. You can see that McCain still holds hard feelings about the 2000 primary debacle (for which he wrongly blames Bush rather than himself), and if W would simply reach out to McCain publicly in order to help bring him within at least a heartbeat of the big desk, McCain’s frozen heart will thaw and all will be forgiven.
This solution would also give Rudy the military cover he needs, and, not unimportantly, marginalize the GOP’s far-right crazies, which is badly needed if we’re really going to move forward as a party.
Some of this is a bitter pill for serious conservatives, but from a practical vantage you could certainly do worse.
Blacksheep on April 2, 2007 at 5:44 PM
Surely he has money stashed in those cheeks?
profitsbeard on April 2, 2007 at 6:26 PM
We stand a good chance in 2008 of electing:
The first woman president
The first black president
The first mormon president.
What do you say we just elect Gladys Knight and call it a day?
I have been waiting for a place to tell that joke, I wish it were funnier :)
dc84123 on April 2, 2007 at 6:34 PM
Vice Pres, da Pips.
I hope McCain sees the writing on the wall and bails.
GO FRED!
Kini on April 2, 2007 at 7:06 PM
If a candidate with some money (let’s say McCain) were to decide to bow out before it’s time to vote, what happens to the money he has raised? Does he have to give it back, or can he give it to a candidate he decides to endorse? How does that work?
aero on April 2, 2007 at 8:01 PM
The Glacier to that woman “Iiiiii’m Hillary, not the Antichriiiiiist!!!”…”…and one more thiiiiiing, it reaaaaaaally takes a village”…”…and one laaaaaast thing – We. Neeeeeeeed. Universal. Healthcaaaaaaare”.
Is that face related to the ‘mad face psychology fettish”?
Entelechy on April 2, 2007 at 10:04 PM
If Hagel is “Fredo”, McCain is “Sal Tessio”.
I couldn’t be happier.
liquidflorian on April 2, 2007 at 11:21 PM
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