Don Surber has an interesting post today about Why 2020 is looking good. Here are two of the points that he raises.
The first is that Joe Biden is having a lot of trouble with fund raising. Surber draws on a Time article--Joe Biden's Fundraising Numbers Raise Questions for His Campaign:
Joe Biden’s presidential bid is not raising enough money to cover the cost of his day-to-day campaign, a surprising turn for someone who entered the race for his Democratic Party’s nomination as the front-runner.
Biden’s fundraising and spending numbers, which were filed by Federal Election Commission late Tuesday, calls into question whether the former Vice President can continue to lead a crowded field of candidates that includes leaders more aligned with the progressive wing of the Democratic Party. Biden retains all of the advantages of almost five decades in politics, but there is also a sense after Tuesday night’s debate that rival — and fellow septuagenarian — Elizabeth Warren is nudging him from center stage.
...
Biden raised $15.7 million last quarter, spent $17.7 million and has about $9 million in the bank, according to the reports. In other words, for every $1 the campaign raised, it spent $1.12. If he continues to spend his third-quarter average of roughly $196,120 a day and continues to raise $174,904 each day, he can grind out until Election Day. But his future finances get ugly if he wants to build beyond the current footprint.
That rate of spending leaves Biden with a campaign nest egg smaller than Bernie Sanders ($33.7 million), Warren ($25.7 million), Pete Buttigieg ($23.4 million) and Kamala Harris ($10.6 million).
The other point Surber raises is one that Marco Rubio--Little Marco--made on Twitter:
Last night’s debate was a reminder that while you may not always agree with everything Trump says or does, the leading alternatives to Trump mock people with traditional beliefs & support socialism,gun confiscation & free government funded health care for unlawful immigrants.— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) October 16, 2019
Surber notes:
President Trump and the RNC raised $125 million in the same period.
Combine a fundraising deficit with a tone deaf message and you have a recipe for electoral disaster.
The only Democrat that gives me pause is Tulsi Gabbard. I still think that Donald would defeat Gabbard, but, she is sane (somewhat). Fortunately, a liberal such as herself is too conservative for the movers and shakers of the Dem Party.
ReplyDeleteAnd here's Thomas Frank with what seems to be a sound take on the weakness of the Dem field in general:
ReplyDeletet.co/FN6n6CriO0?amp=1
I saw an article suggesting that Bloomberg is waiting in the wings, with his bags full of money.
DeleteI thought money in politics was bad?
ReplyDeleteRob S