Hillary Rodham Clinton’s campaign has just recorded its best fundraising yet, but campaign manager Robby Mook remains worried that beating Donald Trump remains an even bet.
“Here’s the reality,” he said in an email fundraiser. “Our country is deeply divided. This will be a very close race. It would be a close race no matter who the Republican nominee was — there are just too many partisans on both sides for anyone ever to win in a landslide. That’s why it’s been 32 years since a presidential election was decided by more than 10 points.”
As did Trump, Clinton has received a post-Democratic National Convention bounce and has an edge in national polls. But the election remains 98 days away and many mine fields remains in the way.
Mook did report good news on the fundraising front for Clinton.
“It was a great month for fundraising — in fact, our best 24 hours ever started on the night Hillary accepted the nomination. Our average contribution in July was just $44, and more than half of our donors last month were brand new to the campaign,” he said.
He added that the Clinton campaign raised nearly $90 million in July alone, and has half of that in the bank.
His full memo:
July was a terrific month for our campaign. We welcomed Tim Kaine to our ticket. We put on a convention in Philadelphia that showed the nation our team, our values, and how proud we are to stand with Hillary. And it was a GREAT month for fundraising — in fact, our best 24 hours ever started on the night Hillary accepted the nomination.
Our average contribution in July was just $44, and more than half of our donors last month were brand new to the campaign. Our team is getting bigger and more diverse every day, and this is still the first and only presidential campaign in history where a majority of donors are women. Together, we’re smashing glass ceilings and breaking down the barriers that hold Americans back from reaching our full potential.
Because of this team, we raised nearly $90 million in July — and we head into August with $58 million on hand to take on Donald Trump, register and turn out as many voters as possible, and win this election.
But we can’t afford to get complacent — not now, not ever. We’re 98 days from Election Day, and early voting in Iowa starts in just seven weeks.
And every day, we’re seeing anew just how dangerous and morally toxic our opponent truly is.
Every time we think he can’t go any lower, he finds a new way to shock and disgust us. When we think we’ve seen it all, he finds new depths to sink to. This weekend, he went after the grieving parents of a decorated Army captain who was killed in action.
That’s who he is. You and I wouldn’t accept that kind of behavior from a teenager, let alone a man seeking the highest office in our country. We don’t insult and belittle people, we don’t hurl accusations colored by bigotry, and we certainly don’t attack our bravest and most vulnerable citizens like Khizr and Ghazala Khan.
When it comes to Trump, it can be tempting to throw up our hands in frustration — or direct a few choice words at our TV screens when they cut to him on the news. But we have to keep fighting. Our country is depending on us to see this through and work even harder.
So we’re going to follow Michelle Obama’s pitch-perfect advice from her speech in Philadelphia: “When they go low, we go high.”
We’ll never sink to Trump’s level. We’re going to keep fighting for the ideals our country was founded on: liberty, equality, and kindness towards our fellow Americans.
Because here’s the reality: Our country is deeply divided. This will be a very close race. It would be a close race no matter who the Republican nominee was — there are just too many partisans on both sides for anyone ever to win in a landslide. That’s why it’s been 32 years since a presidential election was decided by more than 10 points.
That’s also why we can’t afford to take a single vote for granted. We send you all these emails and we ask for your contributions and we keep on pushing day after day — because we know that this team’s work will make the difference between winning and losing this election. The difference between President Hillary Clinton protecting and building on the progress of the last eight years to make life better for American families… or President Donald Trump changing the course of our nation’s history forever.
Make no mistake: This team will decide the outcome of this race. If we keep stepping up like we did in July, registering new people to vote, and getting out into our communities to talk about why this race matters and why we support Hillary, we will win.
If we underestimate our opponent or take this race for granted, we’ll lose.
We have 98 days left — let’s make each one count. Chip in $1 right now, and on November 8th, let’s make history:
Thank you for everything,
Robby
Robby Mook
Campaign Manager
Hillary for America
Paul Bedard, the Washington Examiner’s “Washington Secrets” columnist, can be contacted at [email protected]
