* Money shocker! Hillary Clinton's campaign debt soars

(*UPDATE: Due to a mathematical error, Hillary Clinton's loans to herself were added twice in the calculation of this item. Her total debts are about $21 million, not $31 million. A corrected item covering the first five paragraphs of this one has been published here.)

No wonder Sen. Hillary Clinton was so late filing her required campaign financial reports Tuesday night. Her political team didn't want the shocking news in it to overshadow her lopsided thumping of Sen. Barack Obama in Kentucky.

But here's the morning after, pay-up time. Clinton's campaign debt has now soared to nearly $31 million, according to numbers crunched early this morning by The Times' campaign finance guru, Dan Morain.

She added another $9.5 million in unpaid bills to vendors this last month alone, pushing her total debt to vendors and herself to the new astronomical figure, about a 50% debt increase in one month.

According to a campaign release put out Tuesday evening as election returns revealed her big win in Kentucky and loss in Oregon, Clinton raised "approximately $22 million" from other people in April. The release also touted that $10 million had poured in within 48 hours of another lopsided Clinton victory over Obama, that one in Pennsylvania, and said it was the second best fund-raising month of her entire campaign.

But the number collected is actually closer to $21 million and the release also neglected to mention that she spent $28.9 million, nearly $8 million more than she took in. She used personal loans to make up part of the difference. She also delayed payments to consultants. Including the $9.5 million in unpaid bills from April, she owes consultants and other vendors $19.5 million. Not to mention the total $11.4 million she has loaned herself.

For other campaign finance figures, including surprising financial success by the Republican Party aided by the president, continue reading below the video.

The likely Democratic nominee Obama continues to vastly out-raise Sen. John McCain, but the presumed Republican nominee is closing the money gap with the significant help of his party, according to new campaign finance reports filed Tuesday.

McCain disclosed he had $21.7 million in the bank at the end of April, compared with ...

... Obama’s $46.5 million. But the Republican National Committee is proving to be a real financial equalizer for the Arizona senator with the notorious distaste for fund-raising.

With significant time and help from President George W. Bush, the RNC ended April with $40.6 million in the bank -- 10 times more than the Democratic National Committee, which had a modest $4.4 million in the bank.

The Democratic Party's fund-raising also was a fraction of the Republicans' in April -- a mere $4.7 million, compared with $19.8 million for the RNC.

The DNC’s cash in the bank actually fell from its March total, which was $5.3 million. Democrats have tapped former Vice President Al Gore in an effort to draw donors to party fund-raisers.

Party money can be used to help the nominees in a variety of direct and indirect ways during the general election campaign. Parties can pay for voter registration, voter turnout efforts and advertising.

McCain’s primary fight has long been over, which allowed him to limit spending to $6.4 million last month. Democratic front-runner Obama raised $31.9 million last month and spent $36.4 million, according to his report filed late Tuesday.

McCain disclosed he received $17.8 million in contributions in April, pushing his total receipts to $100.4 million for the whole campaign, less than half of Obama's total of $266.6 million since January 2007.

The freshman Illinois Democrat scooped up $31.9 million last month, a 20% drop from the $40 million he raised in March. He collected $55 million back in February, which seems millions of dollars ago, doesn't it?

-- Andrew Malcolm

Photo: Associated Press

Comments

[laj]

I am a Republican, so I do not know why I care, but Hillary is the Democrats only chance. Why are you letting the media dictate your "darling". Obama cannot possibly win. He can only carry the elites and the blacks.
Oh well, go John McCain..it will be too easy!

[John E]

Wow... Clinton continues to spend far faster than money comes into her campaign. Her debt is greater than what she can raise. She shows poor fiscal management of her campaign funds.

She's the PERFECT leader for our country today! Such behavior exemplifies this country's fiscal policies!

[The Outlander]

If Democrat and Presidential candidate Hillary (not Rodham) Clinton is reporting a debt for her campaign of $31 million in reality the debt is probably closer to sixty million dollars.

Thank you for your time.

[The Outlander]

If Democrat and Presidential candidate Hillary (not Rodham) Clinton is reporting a debt for her campaign of $31 million in reality the debt is probably closer to sixty million dollars.

Thank you for your time.

[wolf]

Amazing. When she lent her campaign 5 million back a few months ago, I think, everyone figured out that her campaign finances were in trouble...

... But months later and millions more raised and she's not only still losing, but 6 times more in debt.

Thank God she's not running our country!

[dave]

the money is another diversion and distraction to get people to believe their money had any major influence on who'd be represented in the white house; even those commanding billions will pretend to take sides: but where the money comes from (your sweat, your tears and slavery) there's so much of it that it could buy almost any number of corrupt candidates - which explains why the major picks are all on the same list. when (rarely) someone like candidate for PRESIDENT, RON PAUL comes along to venture to defend liberty, prosperity and peace, the birthright of the people, this is not for profit but for love. if people show discernment and choose their conscience - it's up to them.

[Ed]

Any moron who attempts to correlate campaign finances to the US economy is obviously ignorant of financial management. Although it appears that those who espouse this fallacy are 1st time voters who lack any political knowledge. They know how to post, but are ignorant of history or facts. Doing research is too much like work for them. It's a lot easier to post nonsense.

[Woodrow]

The key word being "loaned" she/he Clinton are not really spending their "own" money, they expect to be paid back. I like a lot of people cannot understand how you could want something sooooo bad you would spend millions to get it. oh, its the money stupid....lot's of talking fees to be made.

[roger]

Its obvious. she needs a helmet

[Larry Oregon]

How shamefull. SHAME ON YOU HILLARY!

[KHL]

Sounds like a typical dim, spend like there's no tomorrow, promise everyone the moon, the earth and the stars and then stiff them all. Come to think of it sounds like the "modern" republican party too.

[ric Iowa]

What a great example the Clintons show to the young people of America, we are to be responsible and pay our bills on time and be true to not spending beyond our means.
This sounds so much like the way the goverment has been run for quite sometime.
We borrow more money to satisfy some (want's-unneccessary things) and we as citizens are expected to balance our budget and keep the bills paid.
LEAD BY EXAMPLE PLEASE

[Ana Sarcas]

Hillary thinks her invisible friends are going to vote and get her into the White House.

They are going to have to move from 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue to keep her from moving in uninvited, or at least change the locks.

[John Q.Doh]

They use their tongue's to DECEIVE!
The VENOM of SNAKES is under their lip's,and their mouth's are
FULL of BITTERNESS and CURSES!
In their paths nothing but RUIN and MISERY,the FEAR OF GOD is not before their eye's.
They have taken the HEARTS AND MINDS of our leaders.
They have recruited the RICH and THE POWERFUL,and they have blinded us to the TRUTH.
Our human spirit is corrupted.
Why do we worship GREED?
Because,outside the LIMIT OF OUR SIGHT,feeding off of
US,PERCHED on top of us
FROM BIRTH UNTIL DEATH,
are OUR OWNERS,OUR
OWNERS!
They have us,THEY CONTROL US,they are OUR MASTERS!
WAKE UP they're all
about you!
ALL AROUND YOU.

[geo]

Please don't tell me that her supporters don't actually know now that she did NOT raise that 10 million in the 24 hours immediately following PA.

I support her going on with the primary, but I don't support the continued & deliberate hoodwinking of her supporters. Not to mention the vendors left hanging on her behalf.

[Ana Sarcas]

Yes, Kit. They were telling a big fat lie about raising $10 million in the 24 hours after Pennsylvania. It's nothing to them to lie.

[Tod Wilson]

Is this Clinton person real???

I can't believe that they are in 31M hole.. Poor vendors who provided services... In real business world, it is called Bankrupcy.

[Jerry]

Look everyone, it wasn't her fault. She was going to be Queen, now someone has run up this big debt in her name, and she didn't know how that happened. It's someone else's problem, and they're just gonna have to pay because she was gonna be Queen.

[xjug1987]

Where does Hillary get $31M? Oh, thats right Bill has $110Million from his wind fall profits lobbying in foreign countries. And his "library" which has recieved hundreds of millions.... again, from foreigners. So, non-Americans are electing our next President. Anything to win huh. The Clintons are trash and the worst abusers of America. They benefit from the system but when it doesn't work for them, the go around the rules. Oh, and by the way, this is how she would 'Govern". New programs etc... but no cash. This is leadership? This is the best we can do? God help us! Obama is a Marxist so, again, God help us.

[tupac]

Roberto,
I think you are an idiot. What proof do you have to suggest what you suggest? Don't go about making false accusations, it makes you look really really stupid!

[calfarmli]

Hillary!!!! Worried about the WORKING PEOPLE what a joke.Who is paying the vendors bills when they receive them.Are they falling behind because Hillary owes them money,I would think.Does anyone REALLY think she cares,I don't think so.If she did she would be paying them.I bet the vendors are sorry they got involved with her campaign.How ???????????????? is she going to run the country when she can't run her campaign???????????.Can't wait for the Convicted Liar and the Committed Liar to be gone.Hopefully FAR,FAR AWAY.

[Rob]

What a waste of money. If the campaign is a time to find out about the candidates, surely this tells us what we need to know about Hillary Clinton. She's a deficit spender, doesn't honor contracts, and she would be a financial liability to the nation..

[Franklin]

To all of you who keep posting these mysterious 'where does Obama's money come from' posts...

They file campaign finance reports and you can find all the names of the donors right there. Why don't you actually do some research instead of making idiotic insinuations? (Oh wait, then you'll just see that it's average americans and you can't spread more unbased rumors.)

If there were ANY issues with Obama's contributors, you're telling me that Clinton or the media wouldn't have figured that out and brought it up and had a field day with it?

[Jackson]

Now she really must win the nomination in order to keep those bribe...um...sorry ... donations to the Hillary library coming in from overseas. Wink. Wink. Nudge. Nudge. Say no more.

[geo]

I mostly vote republican. I'm not the elite. I'm working class and do not have a college degree, but I'm not stupid.

I am white. And I'm voting for Obama and most of my white friends are voting for Obama because he represents a clear alternative to the politics of past, his campaign is not fueled by lobbyist or special interest and because of one of the most important assets of any great leader...

... like Reagan he engenders optimism. That is one of the very most important things our greatest presidents have done. They literally WILL people to a more successful place. Reagan, FDR, Churchill, Lincoln.

They were good at a lot of things, but the one thing they could do was to bring people to their feet around a common cause and foster optimism in the face of real adversity. That's what it takes to transform our current situation and Obama is the only one with the right stuff to do it.