Biden campaign raises heap of cash — and he will need it
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden’s reelection campaign is raising gobs of cash. And it has an election-year strategy that, in a nutshell, aims to spend more — and spend faster.
Not only has Biden aimed to show himself off as a fundraising juggernaut this month, but his campaign is also making significant early investments both on the ground and on the airwaves — hoping to create a massive organizational advantage that leaves Republican Donald Trump scrambling to catch up.
But while the money pouring in has given Biden and the Democrats a major cash advantage, it’s also becoming clear Biden will need it.
Throughout his life in business and politics, Trump’s provocations have earned him free media attention. Biden, meanwhile, has often struggled to cut through the noise with his message despite holding the presidency.
That means Biden is going to need oodles of cash to blanket battleground states where a few thousand votes could mean the difference between victory or defeat. Add to that the challenge of reaching millennials and even younger voters who formed an important part of his 2020 coalition, in a far more fractured media ecosystem.
Biden’s organizational and outreach effort began in earnest this month, with the campaign using his State of the Union address as a launching pad to open 100 new field offices nationwide and boosting the number of paid staff in battleground states to 350 people. It’s also currently in the middle of a $30 million television and digital advertising campaign targeting specific communities such as Black, Hispanic and Asian voters.
“We’re ramping up campaign headquarters and field offices, hiring staff all across the country before Trump and his MAGA Republicans have even opened one single office,” Biden boasted Friday in New York during a meeting of his national finance committee.
A massive ground game disadvantage didn’t prevent Trump from winning in 2016, a fact Democrats keenly remember.
“It’s one of the stubborn challenges of Trump,” said Robby Mook, campaign manager for Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential bid. “Trump is Trump’s best organizer, and Trump can motivate people from the podium.”
Trump campaign officials concede that Biden and the Democrats will likely have more cash, though they argue that Trump will still be able to run an effective campaign given his ability to attract media coverage.
“Our digital online fundraising continues to skyrocket, our major donor investments are climbing, and Democrats are running scared of the fundraising prowess of President Trump,” said Steven Cheung, communications director for the Trump campaign. “We are not only raising the necessary funds, but we are deploying strategic assets that will help send President Trump back to the White House and carry Republicans over the finish line.”