Biden seeks reelection with a bare-bones campaign

WASHINGTON, D.C. (NewsNation) — In the nearly three months since President Joe Biden formally announced that he is running for reelection in 2024 to “finish this job,” his official campaign team makes up only a fraction of his opponents’ efforts.  

Until recently, Biden only had a handful of campaign staff. Now that number has jumped up to about a dozen, NewsNation learned.  

“Starting lean allows them to save some money and save it for when they really need it,” said Rodell Mollineau, an advisor for the Pro-Biden Super Pac “Unite the Country.” “I look at it as being efficient with resources.”

The light payroll has led, in part, to a cash stockpile. Biden’s campaign announced last week a combined fundraising haul of more than $72 million from April through June alongside the Democratic National Committee and a joint fundraising committee.  

The campaign also said that along with the DNC and the committee, it has $77 million cash on hand. 

These totals are well short of the numbers raised by former presidents Barack Obama and Donald Trump at similar points in their reelection campaigns. Trump and the Republican National Committee raised $105 million in the second quarter of 2019, while Obama and the DNC raised $86 million between April and June 2011. 

A longtime Democratic strategist pointed out that there is a long time between now and the general election.    

“He’s raising a ton of money, getting out across the country talking about the progress he made as president,” said NewsNation political contributor Chris Hahn of Biden. “I expect him to be very small in footprint until probably the fourth quarter.”   

However, some of the big-money donors on the Democratic side tell NewsNation that they are concerned about Biden’s viability, as he is not giving them the indications that he wants it as much as they would hope. A few were concerned that regardless of having the money and better messaging on their side, they could lose in the general election.

As the 2024 race kicks into high gear, the president and his advisers are making a push for their economic agenda, calling it “Bidenomics,” in key swing states such as Pennsylvania. 

“That’s the American Dream — that’s Bidenomics. Rooted in what always worked best for this country — investing in America. Investing in Americans,” the president said in a speech in Philadelphia on Thursday.  

“Our plan is working, Bidenomics. And here’s what it looks like, we’re 13 million new jobs across the country and nearly half a million in Pennsylvania just in the last two and a half years.” 

Despite Biden describing an economic revival in America, the latest polling shows the president’s economic approval rating stands at 37% approving and 58% disapproving.