CNN has a story running on its political ticker revealing that John McCain’s campaign is down to only $250,000. But actually the number is a bit misleading. McCain’s got $2 million in cash but $1.75 million in debt. Now that’s really, really bad news for anyone interested in McCain’s candidacy. But campaign debts are notorious for being honored in the breach — or years later for 10 or 20 cents on the dollar. That may be a bit of an exaggeration. But good luck if McCain owes you a hundred grand and you think you’re going to get some of that 2 mill before McCain spends it trying to pull out of his tailspin.
In any case, I’m interested to hear what political pros out there make of this and what insider insight they can provide.
The one thing I know — a campaign ain’t a bank. There’s no holding asset reserves against liabilities.
