“On the Holmes Front,” with Frank Holmes
Last month, Democratic consultants insisted Stacey Abrams would bring prosperity to Georgia, and possibly the United States. Now they say she won’t even pay her bills.
Key members of Abrams’ second failed campaign to become governor of Georgia say the liberal Democrat put them out in the cold while she spent campaign cash like a drunken sailor—and that even though she raised more money than any candidate in state history, she’s now deep in debt.
Ever since a close but unsuccessful campaign for governor in 2018, Stacey Abrams has been been the bright, shining star of the Democratic Party. She delivered the Democrats’ response to the State of the Union address in 2019. The following year, she was even rumored to be on the short list to become Joe Biden’s vice president instead of Kamala Harris.
Abrams rode that status and exposure into a fundraising bonanza: Her 2022 campaign hauled in $103 million from all over the country on her way to a blowout loss.
At the time, people said it would put her on the way to saving Georgia… but records show that saving was the last thing on her mind.
Despite heaping up a hefty campaign war chest, Abrams is now $1 million in debt… and she’s not paying the people who worked their tails off for her.
More than 180 full-time Abrams staffers had their pay cut in November, the outlets reported. “I figured, $100 million? They should be able to pay me until December,” a former staffer told the website.
“People have told me they have no idea how they’re going to pay their rent in January,” a former Abrams staffer told local media outlets. Abrams’ financial history “was more than unfortunate. It was messed up.”
There are two things Democrats have never been known for: personal loyalty and managing money. But it’s important to point out that these are not conservative attacks: They come from the left-wing Atlanta Journal-Constitution and the even more left-wing Axios.com.
Abrams can’t pay now, because she blew it all on frivolous spending during the campaign, campaign insiders say.
Abrams’ campaign rented a palace of a home for social media influencers to puff wind into her campaign’s sails. Abrams forecast that the home, which now rents for $12,500 a month, would become her TikTok “Hype House.” But as the campaign fell apart, her staffers took over the luxurious digs for their own use.
Abrams also set up vans to hand out campaign “bling” to teenagers…but didn’t link them to voting centers.
“It’s incredibly bad planning,” said a senior Democratic official, who wanted to remain anonymous. “and it shows where their values are at. You can’t look up one day and realize you can’t pay the bills.”
Abrams declared that.
To make matters worse, Abrams spent all this money as she went down to a blazing defeat to Republican Brian Kemp, for the second time.
“So let me get this straight,” wrote Rep, Doug Collins, R-Ga. “Stacey Abrams raised the most money ever for a Governor’s race in GA. She lost by 7.5 points. And they still have over 1 MILLION in debt How did you think she was going to run our State?”
So let me get this straight…
-Stacey Abrams raised the most money ever for a Governor’s race in GA
-She lost by 7.5 points
-And they still have over 1 MILLION in debt?
How did you think she was going to run our State? https://t.co/IVHzM6IMiR
— Doug Collins (@RepDougCollins) December 20, 2022
The story is part of growing evidence that Abrams is in serious financial hot water. During the 2022 campaign, Abrams called the huge spending “necessary” to change Georgia voter registrations. But a Georgia ethics panel ruled in August that her “nonprofit,” the New Georgia Project, faced accusations of breaking the law by hiding $7 million in expenditures over three years.
And, it’s not like overspending is new for Abrams, much less her party. Georgia Democratic operative Chris Huttman said Abrams had a “well-documented pattern” of running out of money while running for statewide office based on her efforts in 2018. Liberal Atlanta Journal-Constitution writer Jim Galloway said at the time that Abrams’ tendency to hand out campaign cash hand-over-fist “isn’t a high burn rate. It’s a forest fire.”
But don’t cry for Abrams: She’s still raking in the cash. The Democrat announced she’s planning to work with actor-musician Selena Gomez to create a Discovery+ documentary titled Won’t Be Silent, praising entertainers who subjected their fans to political rants. Hollywood cast her in a science fiction series as president of the earth—in their belief she may possibly save the whole planet.
And right after the election, Abrams told Good Morning America she is contemplating running for office yet again.
“I may run again,” she said. “But I’ve always said that it’s not about the title. It’s about the work.”
She’s not finished with politics, but many politicos say they’re finished with Abrams.
“I’m done with this… We have vendors still waiting to be paid,” one former Abrams associate told Axios.com.
If Stacey Abrams manages her campaign cash—and treats her own political supporters—this badly, how do you think she would have treated Georgia voters once she got her hands on the state Treasury? Or became vice president?
Frank Holmes is a veteran journalist and an outspoken conservative that talks about the news that was in his weekly article, “On The Holmes Front.”