Donors Rally to Biden in Wake of Trump’s Response to Protests

Democratic donors are pouring money into Joe Biden’s campaign in the wake of the protests spurred by the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis last week.

Two fundraisers said President Donald Trump’s response to the protests and violence that has accompanied some of them have motivated donors to give even more to support Biden.

“As a ‘bundler,’ you’re usually out chasing the bundle but now the bundle is chasing me,” said John Morgan, a longtime Florida-based Democratic fundraiser and one of Biden’s biggest backers. Bundlers raise contributions for candidates and parties from their professional and personal networks and “bundle” them together.

Employees of Morgan’s law firm, Morgan & Morgan, gave Biden more than $435,000, his third largest source of funds for the primary. Those donations were capped at $2,800, but now Morgan, who’s preparing to raise bigger sums in the general election, can collect bigger checks through different channels.

Biden has set up a fundraising vehicle that can accept much bigger amounts, split between the Democratic National Committee, his campaign and 26 state parties, the general election fundraising will far outpace the primaries. He says he’s fielded multiple calls this week from donors who can write large checks – the maximum donation is now $620,300 – asking how they can support the campaign.

“It’s a whole new ballgame,” Morgan said. And it could help Biden narrow the financial advantage Trump, who faced no serious primary opposition, has built for November.

Biden’s fundraising has trailed Trump, whose re-election effort raised $742 million in the last 16 months. Biden and the Democratic National Committee took in less than half of that, $342 million, through the end of April. Trump, the Republican National Committee and two fundraising vehicles had $255 million in the bank at the end of that month compared to $103 million for Biden and the DNC.