With less than two weeks remaining in the presidential contest, Joe Biden's campaign enjoys a massive cash advantage over President Trump's.
The president's campaign committee finished September with $63.1 million in its coffers, compared with the Biden team's $177.3 million cash on hand, according to new filings with the Federal Election Commission late Tuesday evening.
Democrats were quick to delight in Trump's lagging figures, touting their cash on hand numbers in Tuesday night tweets.
It's a severe reversal for Trump, who began his reelection campaign with a large cash advantage.
The Biden campaign announced last week that along with allied Democratic groups, it raised a record-setting $383 million in September alone — about $135 million more than the Trump campaign and Republican affiliates collected last month.
Last week, Trump communications director Tim Murtaugh tweeted that the Trump campaign, the Republican National Committee and joint committees had $251 million cash on hand, writing: "President Trump hits final stretch with strength, resources, record & huge ground game needed to spread message and secure re-election."
Meanwhile, the Biden campaign announced that along with the Democratic National Committee and affiliated groups, the campaign had $432 million in the bank.
A candidate's own campaign committee has the most flexibility with regard to spending.
Trump's campaign has been outspent on television ads in recent weeks, as Biden has dominated the airwaves, particularly in Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin — three critical swing states.
Defending himself against Biden's major fundraising advantage, Trump told a crowd in Erie, Pa., on Tuesday that he could be the "king of all fundraisers" if he wanted.
"I would be the greatest that ever lived," Trump said. "All they have to do is give me a list of the top hundred companies, I'll call the president of every one. They will pay me whatever I want. I would set every record. The problem is, I'd owe them."
Copyright 2020 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.
