So far, the handful of Democrats who’ve announced their 2020 bids have kept things remarkably civil. Behind the scenes, however, a specific tussle is heating up. “They are not all going to be able to raise enough money to get from here to Iowa,” Mark Longabaugh, a top strategist for Bernie Sanders in 2016, told my colleague Chris Smith last month.
For Joe Biden, who’s dragged his feet in entering the race, the money could prove particularly dicey. On the plus side, the former V.P. has the built-in advantage of a network of Barack Obama donors, many of whom, Politico reports, are ready to pull out their checkbooks. “If [Biden] got in, I would be leaning in that direction because, simply put, he’s best qualified, he has the stature and the experience to win the race,” Steve Westly, a major Obama fund-raiser, told the publication. “I think a lot of people will be coalescing around him.”
Other donors, however, aren’t quite so eager. CNBC reports that “several” top Democratic donors are taking a wait-and-see approach, hesitant to fund the early stages of Biden’s campaign for fear he’s passée in an increasingly diverse and progressive party. “I think with Biden there’s a feeling of, ‘I like him, he’s a really good guy, but he’d be running at a moment in time that a 76-year-old white guy may not be what voters want,’” one donor told CNBC. “I don’t want to give chits today for Joe. What’s my benefit?”
Added the donor: “[Biden] has run for president a couple times, and it didn’t always work out.”
That skepticism could be a major problem for Biden, despite his early lead in polls. Sanders and Beto O’Rourke each made headlines for massive fund-raising hauls after announcing their candidacies, and other top-tier candidates like Kamala Harris and Elizabeth Warren have been barnstorming for weeks in an effort to capture momentum and cash to fuel their bids.
The fierce jockeying, Longabaugh told Smith, will be a major factor in narrowing the field. “By the time we get to the end of this year, you’re going to know the three or four who have a legitimate shot at the nomination, and money is going to be a big part of that,” he predicted. Based on his popularity among moderates and his status as the former vice president, Biden is likely to be in better shape than most. But with a late start to his campaign, he could nevertheless find himself playing catch-up to Sanders and O’Rourke, whose grassroots networks are well established. If Biden’s donor network doesn’t come through, he could find himself in an even deeper hole. “We’re very close to Joe Biden and we don’t know what he’s doing, and I like Beto, and I think a woman should be in the mix,” Bill Stetson, an Obama fund-raiser in 2008 and 2012, told Politico. “We have to think about the very big picture, and we need to heal this country right now.”
— Why is Trump obsessed with Beto O’Rourke?
— The self-driving techpocalypse: the Boeing tragedy is just the beginning
— Inside the Disney-Fox Freakout
— Beto vs. Biden: who is Obama’s true heir apparent?
— Cover story: Riding around with Beto O’Rourke as he comes to grips with a presidential run
Looking for more? Sign up for our daily Hive newsletter and never miss a story.
