For months, the Biden campaign has touted its campaign cash advantage over Trump, though it was largely a mirage. Biden had been jointly fundraising with the Democratic National Committee since he launched his campaign, while Donald Trump has only been jointly fundraising with the Republican National Committee since March, when he secured the Republican nomination.
Last month, the Biden campaign hosted a mega fundraiser featuring Hollywood celebrities and three presidents (Joe Biden, Barack Obama, and Bill Clinton), bringing in a reported $26 million from large donors who were willing to shell out big money. A few weeks later, the Trump campaign destroyed the narrative that he couldn't compete in fundraising after hosting a huge fundraiser in Palm Beach, Florida, that brought in a huge $50.5 million, nearly double what Joe Biden's star-studded fundraiser in New York City was able to pull in.
Without a doubt, Trump was well on his way to closing the fundraising gap, and it looks like the Biden campaign is panicking about that because another star-studded Hollywood fundraiser is being planned for June, with Barack Obama as the headliner.
"President Joe Biden’s campaign plans to host a major fundraiser in Los Angeles next month with former President Barack Obama and Hollywood superstars George Clooney and Julia Roberts, according to a campaign official," reports NBC News. "The star-studded lineup is expected to boost Biden’s fundraising efforts at a time when Donald Trump and the Republican National Committee are aiming to close the cash gap now that the former president has won the delegates needed to secure the nomination, allowing him to use all the GOP tools at his disposal."
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In order to boost donations, the June fundraiser will "feature a contest with Clooney and Roberts run across the campaign’s social media platforms to engage grassroots donors, as well as top celebrities and surrogates," the report continues. "The two Academy Award winners will also lend their names for campaign emails and text messages, in hopes of attracting more contributions."
This is likely an attempt to boost small donations from grassroots supporters, as Biden's campaign relies heavily on big donations from rich voters and corporations. According to recent fundraising reports, 61% of Donald Trump's donations come from small donors, while Biden gets only 38% of his donations from small donors.
Sources also tell NBC News Biden is expected to host a fundraiser on the East Coast early this summer, featuring appearances by Clinton and former Secretary of State and twice-failed presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.
After touting his fundraising advantage for months, the Biden campaign now claims they've always assumed Trump would narrow that gap.
“We’re not under any illusion that he’s not going to narrow the gap,” a Biden campaign adviser told.NBC News. “But what he can’t get back is the time we’ve had with all this money to do what we’ve done.”
Despite Biden's fundraising advantage so far and the money he's spent, he's trailing in the polls both nationally and in battleground states. So it's hard to see what exactly they've gained from their fundraising advantage so far.
