Major Democratic donors have paused contributions totaling roughly $90 million to the largest pro-Biden super PAC, opting to hold their money unless the president drops out of the race, the New York Times reported on Friday.
Donors have frozen multiple eight-figure donations they had promised to Future Forward PAC — the committee designated by the Biden campaign as its leading super PAC — amid worries that the president is in a uniquely weak position ahead of November’s election, two individuals familiar with the situation told the NYT.
Democratic donors are also planning on diverting money away from the presidential election and toward down-ballot elections to hedge against what they view as increasingly likely defeat in the race for the White House.
“I think that the dam has broken and that more and more people will come out publicly,” long-time Democratic donor Whitney Tilson said in early July. “There is basically no — almost no support remaining for him as a candidate.”
In the weeks following the June 27 presidential debate where President Joe Biden appeared disoriented and struggled to articulate, 19 Democratic members of Congress and numerous liberal pundits have called on the president to drop out of the race, according to the NYT. Even Biden’s reelection operation seems to be testing the waters, with the president’s campaign reportedly testing Vice President Kamala Harris’ viability against Trump, according to the New York Post.
“He needs to drop out,” one Biden campaign official told NBC News. “He will never recover from this.”
The blow to Biden’s campaign finance operation follows former President Donald Trump’s campaign erasing the president’s fundraising lead in May. Trump and the Republican National Committee had $171 million in cash on hand as of the most recent campaign finance reports, compared to the just $157 million held by the Biden campaign and the Democratic National Convention, The Hill reported.
The primary super PAC supporting Trump, MAGA Inc., had $93.7 million in cash reserves as of May while Future Forward PAC had a slightly smaller war chest of $92.3 million, according to Federal Election Commission records. Much of the funds taken in by MAGA Inc., however, are being diverted to cover Trump’s legal expenses, according to CNN.
One Future Forward advisor told the NYT they believe the donations will return once the current uncertainty regarding the Democratic presidential ticket is resolved. The PAC has announced $250 million in advertisement reservations following the Democratic National Convention in August.
Despite mounting pressure, the president has repeatedly asserted that he will not drop out.
“I am firmly committed to staying in this race, to running this race to the end, and to beating Donald Trump,” Biden wrote in a letter to congressional Democrats on Monday.
Future Forward PAC could not be reached for comment.
(Featured image credit: Screen Capture/CSPAN)
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