Biden insists campaign is raising ‘half a million dollars a day’ despite Iowa ‘gut punch’
Joe Biden also jabbed Michael Bloomberg, calling his vast personal fortune his 'only baggage'
Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden denied reports on Monday that his campaign, which has repeatedly lagged behind most of his top rivals in fundraising, is hemorrhaging cash after an unexpected fourth-place finish during the Iowa caucuses last week.
Asked during an interview on "CBS This Morning" whether his campaign was running low on cash, the former vice president insisted his team was fundraising about $500,000 per day.
“No it’s not. At least not until today,” he said. “I hope you guys help it out a little bit here.”
From October through December, Biden raised and spent about $23 million, ending the year with about $9 million in the bank -- far less than his 2020 competitors. Though he initially pledged not to accept PAC money, Biden reversed course in late October amid low fundraising numbers.
Biden’s comments come almost one week after the first-in-the-nation nominating contest in Iowa, which he was expected to handily win. Instead, results released Sunday revealed that Biden received just six state delegates, behind former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg (14), Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders (12) and Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren (eight). Biden later called the fourth-place finish a “gut punch.”
Worse for Biden, the long-time frontrunner in the Democratic race, is a slew of polls showing him sliding in New Hampshire, which holds its primary Tuesday. According to an aggregate of polls by RealClearPolitics, Biden is projected to finish in fifth. Nationally, he still holds an increasingly narrow lead over Sanders.
“I took a hit in Iowa, and I’ll probably take a hit here,” Biden said during the Friday night debate in Manchester, New Hampshire.
SANDERS, BUTTIGIEG ARE WINNING THE 2020 CAMPAIGN FUNDRAISING RACE
No Democratic presidential candidate in recent history became the nominee without placing in at least the top two spots in New Hampshire and Iowa. Still, Biden on Monday said his fortune could shift when more diverse states like Nevada and South Carolina cast their ballots.
“Nothing’s going to happen until we get down to a place and around the country where there’s much more diversity,” he said. “And, you know, you’re always behind the eight ball when you’re running in New Hampshire and you have two people from the neighboring states,” he said, referring to Sanders and Warren.
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After the first four states vote, however, Biden could encounter a new adversary: Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
Bloomberg did not participate in the Iowa caucuses and won't appear on the ballots of other early-voting states, including New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada. Instead, he’s courting the 14 delegate-rich states that will cast their vote on Super Tuesday (March 3), including California.
In a recent New York Times report, Bloomberg, one of the wealthiest people in the world, did not rule out the possibility that he’ll spend $1 billion on the election -- and vowed to use his expansive resources to support the eventual nominee if he doesn’t win. Already, he’s spent $300 million on a massive advertising blitz.
Biden jabbed the massive ad campaign currently underway and called Bloomberg’s fortune “the only baggage he has.”
“I’m not concerned,” he said when asked about Bloomberg’s sudden ascent to third place in a new national poll, behind Biden and Sanders. “By the way, the only baggage he has is all that money.”