Rep. Patrick Kennedy, D-R.I., is awash in money but has no one to spend it against.
According to the Federal Election Commission, Kennedy had over a million dollars - $1,015,540 to be precise - in his campaign treasury at the end of 2005, despite lacking a declared opponent in either the Democratic primary or the general election this fall.
Calls to Kennedy's office for comment were not returned.
Discussions about a candidate to oppose Kennedy are ongoing, said Chuck Newton, director of communications for the Rhode Island Republican Party. Though Kennedy's seat seems safe, Newton said last week that he believes Kennedy could be defeated by "the right candidate in the right place at the right time with the right amount of financing."
Kennedy began 2005 with $749,100 in the bank, having soundly defeated Republican David Rogers for re-election in November 2004 with 64 percent of the vote.
He raised $816,941 last year, mostly from individual contributors - $559,385 came from individuals, versus $180,065 from political action committees and $60,990 from other committees. Kennedy's campaign spent $559,502 over the course of the year, largely on travel expenses, according to the FEC report.
Kennedy's million dollars dwarfs the campaign funds of the Ocean State's other congressman, Rep. Jim Langevin, D-R.I., who had $242,083 on hand at the end of 2005.
Kennedy represents Rhode Island's District 1, which includes Brown's campus, and was first elected to the House of Representatives in 1994, where he serves on the powerful House Appropriations Committee. Known as a formidable fundraiser, Kennedy was chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, which raises money for Democratic House candidates, in 1999 and 2000.
