When your fundraising goal is to raise 20% less than last quarter, you're in trouble.

As the lies from the fake Indian proliferate, donations to the Elizabeth Warren campaign have tanked. The prospect of reporting a substantial decline in fourth-quarter fundraising threatens to attach the stink of failure to her presidential ambitions just as the narrowing of the field accelerates.

The Hill reported (hat tip: Legal Insurrection):

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) emailed her supporters this morning, urging them to donate more as the fourth fundraising quarter — and the year — comes to a close. "So far this quarter, we've raised a little over $17 million," the email says. "That's a good chunk behind where we were at this time last quarter." This is true; Warren's campaign raised $24.6 million in the third quarter, second to only Sen. Bernie Sanders' (I-Vt.) campaign, which brought in over $25 million. Warren's campaign hopes to be at $20 million when the quarter ends in four days, the email says. After being virtually tied with Democratic presidential primary front-runner former Vice President Joe Biden in October, Warren has hit a slump, falling behind Sanders in the polls and losing ground to South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg.

When a campaign's goal is to raise 20% less than it did the previous quarter, I think it is fair to conclude that it is failing.

Is a recovery possible? Of course, nothing can ever be ruled out, but once the public starts laughing at you as a habitual liar, it is pretty hard to regain your footing.

Photo credit: Gage Skidmore (cropped).