Democrats are beginning to worry about President Trump’s 2020 war chest, which is larger than any other sitting president in history at this point in the campaign.
Some strategists believe the eventual Democratic nominee will not be able to compete against the Trump campaign’s and Republican National Committee’s joint fundraising, which combined have $158 million on hand, according to Politico.
Trump’s reelection effort has raised about twice as much as former President Barack Obama’s reelection campaign had at this point in the race.
“The resources [Trump] has will be put to work anywhere and everywhere that he feels like he can scare up electoral votes, and Democrats will never catch up. It’s just too much money,” Texas-based Democratic strategist Chris Lippincott said. “That’s real trouble … I’m not here to curse the dark, but it’s dark.”
The Trump campaign effort is currently outspending the lone Democratic PAC messaging against him by a 10-to-1 margin. Trump’s 2020 coalition has spent roughly $23 million so far on advertising.
The sooner Democrats settle on a nominee, the sooner the party can focus on beating Trump. The top tier candidates in the Democratic primary are still in flux, however.
The latest polling out of Iowa shows former Vice President Joe Biden and Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren are neck-and-neck, at 18% and 17% respectively, after Biden dropped 6 points and Warren gained 4 points. South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg also surged 7 points since the last Iowa poll to 13%.
Warren’s campaign recently revealed it has $25.7 million in cash on hand, but Biden, Sanders, and Buttigieg have not yet released their totals. Biden, however, has been fundraising off his campaign’s lack of cash, and his cash burn rate is 30% higher than his top rivals’.
“We don’t know if the Democratic candidate is going to be able to even compete with such a shorter timeline, even if they have significant resources after the convention,” said Tara McGowan, who founded the progressive group ACRONYM.
