REPORT: O’Malley Campaign Near Financial Collapse

According to a report issued today by the Washington Post, Martin O’Malley’s campaign is just about out of money. They write:

With barely 10 weeks before Democrats start picking their presidential nominee, former Maryland governor Martin O’Malley’s campaign is perilously close to financial collapse. The Democratic hopeful this week began asking the roughly 30 staffers at his Baltimore headquarters to redeploy to Iowa and elsewhere, a tacit acknowledgment that he will need a surprisingly strong showing in the first caucus state to stay in the race. And the campaign is now planning to seek public matching funds, a move that could help pay bills in the short term but undercut the candidate’s ability to compete once the voting begins. In recent cycles, major candidates have opted out of the antiquated matching system because it imposes state-by-state spending caps now considered impractical.

The possibilities in Iowa are grim: Because of the complicated rules governing the caucuses, O’Malley risks not getting on the scoreboard at all on Feb. 1 unless his support builds markedly between now and then. In most of the 1,682 precincts, a candidate must receive 15 percent backing or their performance is recorded as zero. O’Malley has remained stuck in the single digits in Iowa polling. Senior O’Malley aides cast their recent decisions as strategic moves, insisting that O’Malley, who has spent more time in Iowa than either of his rivals, is well-positioned to pull off a surprise there on Feb. 1. A strong showing, they argue, could still propel the campaign forward, prompting fresh interest among donors and voters in the states that follow.