A super PAC in support of Joe Biden’s presidential candidacy launched Wednesday following a change in tone from the campaign on its tolerance for outside super PAC support.
“It’s clear from his actions that Donald Trump is afraid to run against Joe Biden,” the Unite the Country super PAC’s website states. “He and his allies are already spending millions of dollars to attack Joe. Our mission is to support Joe Biden, take the fight to Donald Trump and elect a president who will stand up for all of us.”
A launch video for the PAC features portions from Biden’s stump speech in which the former vice president lauds the country’s worker productivity and research universities alongside clips of lab workers, farmers and a Mars rover.
Larry Rasky, who worked on Biden’s 1988 and 2008 presidential campaigns, is listed as the PAC’s treasurer in its Federal Election Commission filing.
The PAC previously filed a statement of organization in April under the name “For the People” but did not move forward with spending or raising money after Biden campaign spokesperson Kate Bedingfield said in a tweet that “@JoeBiden does not welcome support from super PACs.”
Following lackluster fundraising and reporting less than half the cash-on-hand as primary rivals Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren and Pete Buttigieg at the end of September, the campaign drastically softened its tone on outside super PACs.
“In this time of crisis in our politics, it is not surprising that those who are dedicated to defeating Donald Trump are organizing in every way permitted by current law to bring an end to his disastrous presidency. Nothing changes unless we defeat Donald Trump,” Bedingfield said last week.
Super PACs are able to spend money to support or oppose a candidate with advertisements, direct mail, phone calls and other means, but are prohibited by law from coordinating with other campaigns. Candidates are essentially powerless to stop super PACs from supporting their candidacies, but many large super PACs are run by former staff members and close allies of the candidates, implying approval by the candidates.
Biden on Sunday said that he has not changed his position on super PAC support.
“I didn’t change my opinion,” Biden said. “Look, they’re able to go out and do this, period. I cannot stop them if I wanted to stop them.”
Biden’s rivals in recent days have criticized his campaign’s flip on super PACs.
“The former vice president has been unable to generate grassroots support, and now his campaign is endorsing an effort to buy the primary through a super PAC that can rake in unlimited cash from billionaires and corporations,” Sanders campaign manager Faiz Shakir said.
An Elizabeth Warren campaign email to supporters indirectly referenced Biden. “As some of the other Democratic campaigns have begun to stall, handfuls of their wealthy supporters are gearing up to start Super PACs for candidates who can’t mobilize enough grassroots support,” the email read.
