GOP Still $10 Million Short For Scaled-Back Convention

LA Times:

Republican Party officials have developed a well-deserved reputation for planning evermore extravagant national conventions, each built on the party's ability to secure abundant cash.

But just six weeks before the convention, where Arizona Sen. John McCain is to accept his party's nomination, executives found they were about $10 million short of what they needed for a celebration they had already scaled back.

Officials say they have already secured most of the funds and that meeting budget needs was never in doubt. Still, this previously unknown -- and rather unusual -- last-minute GOP fundraising headache underscores the challenges facing both parties: A souring economy, complex campaign finance rules and the candidates' talk of reform has discouraged participation by corporations and the lobbyists who advocate for them.

Read the whole story: LA Times