Plea From Dean to Help Pay His Debt

Former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean, who suspended his presidential bid a week ago, sent out a solicitation to supporters Tuesday asking for help in retiring a $400,000 campaign debt.

The outstanding expenses were incurred in the last 30 days, and mostly stem from unpaid bills for brochures, yard signs, buses and staging equipment, Dean wrote.

“When these things were ordered, we thought we could win key early contests and use the momentum to secure more victories in other states,” Dean wrote in an e-mail titled “I Need Your Help.”

“But things did not go as we had hoped, creating a deficit in the financial resources we were counting on,” Dean said. “Now we are scrambling to retire this debt quickly.... This debt is a huge concern to me. I need the help of good friends like you now.”

Dean raised $50.3 million during his campaign, a record for a Democratic presidential candidate. In the last week before the Feb. 17 Wisconsin primary alone, he raised $1.4 million online.

Spokesman Jay Carson said those contributions paid for television commercials, travel and staff the campaign poured into Wisconsin, the last state where Dean competed.