Candidate's Cash on Hand

Open Left has the cash on hand numbers of the candidates...

Here are the cash on hand totals I have found so far. These numbers do not reflect campaign debt, and include money raised for the general election.

Democrats
Obama: $34M
Clinton: $33M
Edwards: $12M
Richardson: $7.1M
Dodd: $6.4M
Biden: $2.8M
Kucinich: $221K

Republicans
Giuliani: $18.3M
Romney: $12.1M
Paul: $2.4M
McCain: $2M
Brownback: $460K
Huckabee: $437K
T. Thompson: $122K

If you would have asked me 2 months ago which candidate would be right behind Richardson in money raised, I would have said Joe Biden. However, Chris Dodd has more than twice as much money as Biden does. I wouldn't be surprised if Biden drops out early this fall. he seems to running a campaign focusing on Iraq and with Petreus' report coming out in September, Biden could drop out then.

The surprising number to me is Chris Dodd having $6.4 million on hand. He has already aired TV ads in the state. Last month he opened up campaign offices in the state and has staff on the ground finally. If he continues to have decent fundraising quarters he should be able to have enough money to have a strong organization in Iowa.

I saw Sen. Dodd on CSPAN this evening at a campaign stop at diner in Ottumwa. Dodd gave a passionate speech, joked with the audience, and shook everyone's hands. What showed was that Dodd understands retail politics. Couple this with enough money to have a strong organization in Iowa and Chris Dodd could have a surprise finish in Iowa. If Dodd could pull off a 3rd place finish in Iowa, he might be able to pull out a decent finish in New Hampshire based on being from a nearby state.

However, the problem for Dodd (and Richardson and even Edwards) is having the money to compete in the following states, especially on Super, Duper Tuesday on Feb. 5th. While these lower tiered candidates are trying to win Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina, Obama and Clinton will have the money for TV ads and have staff on the ground in Florida, New York, New Jersey, and California. This is where Obama's and Clinton's money will give them a huge advantage.