Political ambition alone didn’t cause Pennsylvania Treasurer Rob McCord’s swift fall from grace.

McCord, 55, resigned suddenly on Friday, midway through his second four-year term. He confessed to strong-arm campaign tactics during his run for governor last spring.

McCord said he will plead guilty to federal charges that involve him telling two potential campaign contributors that he could make it difficult for them if they did not support his run in the Democratic gubernatorial primary.

“I stepped over the line by trying to take advantage of the fact that two potential contributors hoped to continue to do business with the commonwealth and by developing talking points to remind them that I could make things difficult for them,” McCord said in a two-and-a-half minute video. “I essentially said that the potential contributors should not risk making an enemy of the state treasurer. Clearly that was wrong, I was wrong. It was a mistake. I stand ready to pay the price for that mistake.”

McCord’s confession speaks volumes about the political climate in Harrisburg.

A graduate of Harvard and the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business, McCord clearly received an education steeped in business and personal ethics.

In the business world, McCord applied ethical standards and prospered. He had been a venture capitalist managing more than $1 billion in assets and raising money for startups that created more than 2,000 jobs.

McCord clearly knew right from wrong. He had demonstrated his ability to succeed while following the rules. He was ambitious — in a good way.

Clearly, McCord took a wrong turn. But what he called “a mistake” appears to have been more of a miscalculation.

He must have decided he needed to cheat if he wanted to be governor. He must have studied the political landscape and decided he could get away with cheating. And if the swiftness of his resignation and confession are any indication, McCord had carefully studied the risk and consequences of getting caught — and accepted the consequences without a second thought.

It’s ironic that the candidate who defeated McCord, Gov. Tom Wolf, spent nearly $15 million in the primary, including $10 million of his own money. McCord spent about $9 million including $2.2 million of his own.

Now it’s Wolf’s job to appoint someone to complete the final two years of McCord’s term. With a projected $2.2 billion state budget deficit, Wolf’s choice will be extremely important.

The governor needs to find a treasurer with as much ambition as talent — along with a better sense of ethics.