Romanoff Sells House to Fund Campaign, Still Trails Bennet by Millions

Andrew Romanoff, Democratic primary challenger to Sen. Michael Bennet* of Colorado, has confirmed his underdog status by selling his house and loaning the money to his campaign. The sad part: even after the $325,000 loan, his war chest is millions of dollars lighter than Bennet's. Romanoff reported having $464,000 in cash June 30, as opposed to Bennet's $2.6 million. Yet the trailing candidate, who was recently endorsed by Bill Clinton, has found a way to work this handicap into his campaign message:

Romanoff also couldn't help using the opportunity for new digs at Bennet, who has received most of the party endorsements and more than $1.3 million in cash from PACs. Romanoff has sworn off all PAC money for his current campaign.

"I'd like to create a democracy where you don't have to sell your house to win the U.S. Senate, but we're not there yet," he said. "I expect to win and repay the loan. I happen to believe Americans of modest means deserve representation, too."

Romanoff risks losing the money altogether, since few failed campaigns are able to repay loans. But at least he has a sense of humor about it, saying, "I'm never home anyway."
 
Read the full story at the Denver Post.

*NB: Bennet is the brother of James Bennet, editor of The Atlantic. 

This article available online at:

http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2010/07/romanoff-sells-house-to-fund-campaign-still-trails-bennet-by-millions/60461/