McCain's Slight Money Problem

John McCain's campaign was almost broke several times over the course of the Republican primary, so it must have seemed like a good idea at the time when he signed up for public matching funds to be paid out in March. That decision would severely limit the total amount he could raise and spend but would give his campaign a shot in the arm late in the primary, which back then must have seemed like smart planning for the future.

However, now that he's the nominee and raising money at a respectable clip, he doesn't need those public matching funds anymore, and if he is required to take them it will severely limit what he can do between now and September. It is thus bad news for McCain that the FEC has told him that he can't just cancel his application for matching funds, but rather that he may only ask and hope.

The FEC is in a weird spot of its own, because of six commissioner spots, only two are occupied and thus it does not have a quorum. McCain is pressing on, and that seems like a bad idea to me on his part. The FEC is still in regulatory control, even if it can't offer official opinions without a quorum. This doesn't seem to me to be a matter of opinion, but rather one of established rules.

Oh, and PS: that loan McCain got to keep his head above water while he was figuring out how to rise to the top? The FEC has some questions about that. And there's always the added bonus of having your name on the bill that is currently placing you in a campaign finance pickle.