New figures released Monday show President Donald Trump has an overwhelming lead in fundraising over the man who wants his job, presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden.
Biden and his party, according to The New York Times, are nearly $187 million behind Trump and the Republican National Committee. According to the numbers, Biden could raise almost $1 million every day between now and Nov. 3, 2020, and still not reach what Trump will have by Election Day.
Trump and the RNC raised $63 million in March and entered April with $244 million in cash on hand. Biden and the DNC had $57.2 million in the bank. Biden’s best fundraising month so far was March, when he raised $46.7 million. However, the coronavirus pandemic has slowed his fundraising pace.
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Biden has already locked up almost universal support among what was the largest, most diverse number of Democratic presidential candidates in history.
He was also endorsed last week by former President Barack Obama, arguably the Democratic Party’s most popular figure.
Still, without any Democratic rivals left, Biden likely won't secure the number of delegates needed to clinch the nomination until June, and the already-delayed Democratic National Convention has laid off half of its host committee staff in Milwaukee, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
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Terry McAuliffe, who ran the 2000 Democratic National Convention in Los Angeles, is skeptical whether there will be an actual convention this year.
"Sure, it's possible we have a convention. I personally think it's probably most unlikely," McAuliffe told Fox6. "You have to raise $70-80 million for these things. Can you imagine trying to raise money right now to go to Milwaukee in the summer? How difficult that would be, you can't make money calls."
In Biden and Trump, voters will choose between two white septuagenarians with dramatically different prescriptions for health care, climate change, foreign policy and leadership in an era of extreme partisanship.
At 77, Biden becomes the oldest major party presidential nominee in modern history. And having spent most of his life as an elected official in Washington, no nominee has had more experience in government.
But in Trump, Biden is up against an adversary the likes of which he has never faced in his decadeslong political career. The 73-year-old Republican president opens with a massive cash advantage and a well-established willingness to win at any cost.
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Trump’s campaign is moving forward with a multipronged attack. It is similar to the unconventional playbook Trump used against Hillary Clinton four years ago with unexpected success.
Trump campaign spokesman Tim Murtaugh said Biden will be portrayed as too liberal for most Americans, weighed down by questions about his son’s overseas business dealings and about questionable mental acuity at his age. Brad Parscale, Trump’s campaign manager, predicted Trump would “destroy” Biden, whom the president and his allies have nicknamed “Sleepy Joe.”
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The Republican National Committee has already assembled an extensive research book on Biden. The GOP has devoted 10 researchers to Biden and sent hundreds of Biden-related freedom of information and public records requests to gather additional damaging material.
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Biden acknowledged during a virtual fundraiser last week his team has discussed a faster timeline for announcing his running mate, which traditionally comes on the eve of the national convention. But, he added, “It’s going to take a while to get through the usual vetting.”
Meanwhile, both candidates are staring down the coronavirus pandemic, which has turned 2020 campaign logistics on their head. With peak infection rates still several weeks away in many parts of the country, the outbreak and related economic devastation will play a major role in shaping voter attitudes and campaign logistics.
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