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roseann demoro
Bernie Sanders Raises Over $3.3 Million From 120,000 Small Donors in Just 10 Hours
As one mainstream political observer noted, that's "pretty damn good."
Feb 18, 2019
Update (9:30 AM ET 2/20/19): 'Unprecedented': Bernie Sanders Campaign Says It Raised $6 Million From 225,000 Donors in First 24 Hours
In the 24 hours since Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont announced his 2020 run for president, his campaign on Wednesday morning reports that they were able to raise nearly $6 million from 225,000 individual donors across all 50 states.
According to a statement by the campaign, exactly 223,047 individuals contributed $5,925,771--putting the total raised over the $6 million mark with an average donation of $27. Since putting it online early Tuesday morning, the campaign said the senator's launch video has been viewed more than 8.3 million times across social media platforms, including 5.3 million views on Twitter alone.
Read the full updated story here.
Update (7:15 PM ET):
After an out-of-the-gate fundraising spree following the initial announcement early Tuesday morning (see below), sources from within the Bernie Sanders presidential campaign report that in just 10 hours--as of 5:00 PM ET--it was able to raise $3.3 million from approximately 120,000 donors.
The resulting donation average might sound familiar to those who remember the number Sanders turned into a catchphrase during his 2016 campaign: $27.
As other reporter's noted online, the Sanders campaign has now raised more money in less than half a day than the campaigns of Sens. Elizabeth Warren, Kamala Harris, and Amy Klobuchar raised during their first 24 hours - combined:
In addition to news that Faiz Shakir, formerly the national political director for the ACLU, has been hired to be Sanders' campaign manager, backers of Bernie's bid could be found applauding what they considered a very successful launch less than 12 hours into his 2020 run:
Earlier:
In just the first three hours following an announcement early Tuesday morning, the 2020 presidential campaign of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) says it raised more than $1 million--with the number still climbing--proving the army of small-dollar donors which fueled his 2016 campaign are still on board, 'feeling the Bern,' and ready to put their hard-earned money behind the Democratic candidate of their choice.
According to sources from within the campaign, as of 11:00 AM Eastern time, Sanders raised $1.2 million from approximately 42,000 individual donors in all fifty states.
Reacting on MSNBC, the Washington Post's Jonathan Capeheart--based on earlier reports the campaign had raised over $1 million since the 7:00 AM launch--couldn't help but acknowledge that Sanders' morning fundraising haul was "pretty damn good."
As Josh Orton, a senior advisor to Sanders, tweeted at 10:39 AM:
Subsequently, the campaign confirmed the number continued to climb and other outlets reported it had exceeded the $1.5 million mark.
As The Daily Beast noted, Sanders was able to raise more money in a matter of hours than Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) raised in the entire first day of her campaign:
Up to this point, Harris had been the most dynamic fundraiser among Democratic candidates in the race, having raised a whopping $1.5 million in 24 hours after declaring from more than 38,000 individual donors. That number, the Harris campaign noted at the time, had surpassed the number of individual donors for Sanders in his first day of running during his 2016 bid. Now, Sanders' current campaign, says they have already received contributions that beat both of those figures.
According to a Cenk Uygur of The Young Turks, mainstream political pundits continue to underestimate the "power of small-dollar donors" and how--since his 2016 campaign--Sanders has been able to upend the political landscape by creating a source of campaign revenue that comes from people, not corporate interests or large campaign committees:
RoseAnn DeMoro, former president of National Nurses United (NNU) and a prominent Sanders backer, said there's no reason the campaign couldn't maintain the pace--or even exceed it--over the course of the day:
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Critics Say Howard Schultz "Seriously Considering" 2020 Run Shows He's Not Qualified for Position
"If Howard Schultz were 'seriously thinking' about an independent run for president," quipped Larry Sabato, "he would have abandoned the idea already."
Jan 27, 2019
The announcement by Howard Schultz on Sunday that he is "seriously considering" a 2020 run for president was proof enough for some critics that the billionaire, former CEO of Starbucks, and self-described "independent centrist" is definitely not qualified for the position.
In messages on social media and an interview on 60 Minutes, Schultz announced his consideration while also championing a new memoir and launching a three-month book tour to promote it alongside his political ideas. Among those ideological positions is his belief that while it's possible and good to build a global business empire in order to provide people around the world with subjectively "delicious" and "overpriced" coffee it remains impossible, as he argued on 60 Minutes, to improve and expand Medicare so that every single American is covered.
"Every American deserves the right to have access to quality health care. But what the Democrats are proposing is something that is as false as the wall," said Schultz as he compared President Trump's xenophobic border wall to a single-payer system, which polls show 7 in 10 Americans now support, including 84 percent of Democrats and 52 percent of Republicans. "That is free health care for all," Schultz falsely claimed, "which the country cannot afford."
Contrary to Schultz's assertion, a study released in November showed that a Medicare for All system in the United States could save the country $5.1 trillion over ten years. Progressives did not let the former executives remark go by without comment.
Even Larry Sabato, the politically moderate director of the University of Virginia's Center for Politics, was severly unimpressed. "If Howard Schultz were 'seriously thinking' about an independent run for president," Sabato quipped, "he would have abandoned the idea already. I've had undergrad students with a more compelling platform than Schultz offered tonight."
For Democrats, of course, the large concern surrounding an independent run by Schultz--a threat also seen in New York billionaire Michael Bloomberg--is how such a candidate would siphon off votes and give President Donald Trump that much better a shot at re-election.
Julian Castro, among the current 2020 Democratic candidates and the former housing secretary under President Obama, told CNN's Jake Tapper on "State of the Union" on Sunday that a run by Schultz "would provide Donald Trump with his best hope of getting re-elected."
And Tina Podlodowski, the Democratic Party Chair in Washington state, said in a statement: "I have two words for Howard Schultz on a potential run for president as an independent: Just. Don't."
Regardless of his intentions, RoseAnn DeMoro, a labor organizer and strong supporter of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), indicated her belief that Schultz poses no serious threat to anyone in 2020.
Matt Stoller, a fellow at the Open Markets Institute, also said there is nothing to worry about:
On the other hand:
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Trouncing Biden and Beto, Bernie Sanders Emerges as Clear Frontrunner in 2020 Straw Poll
"I think people in Washington are (again) underestimating the potential strength of a Sanders campaign (which could actually be part of his strength again)."
Dec 17, 2018
While an outsized chunk of the corporate media's early 2020 coverage has been centered on the speculation and big donor enthusiasm surrounding centrist Texas Rep. Beto O'Rourke's possible White House bid, a new straw poll released on Tuesday found that Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) is far and away the leading presidential choice among progressives eager to take down President Donald Trump and forge ahead with a bold agenda.
"If the senator runs (I hope he does), he will have the best organizing program of any 2020 candidate."
--Winnie Wong, People for Bernie
Conducted by Democracy for America (DFA)--a political action committee with over a million members--the survey found that Sanders topped the ever-growing list of potential Democratic candidates with 36 percent support, followed by former Vice President Joe Biden at 15 percent and O'Rourke at 12 percent.
All other possible candidates included in the straw poll, including Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), earned less than 10 percent support.
The Intercept's Ryan Grim argued that the DFA survey shows political elites may once again be underestimating Sanders, who consistently polls as the most popular politician in the country.
Though Sanders emerged from the early survey as the strong front-runner, DFA executive director and incoming chair Charles Chamberlain said in a statement, "Progressive support in the 2020 Democratic primary is up for grabs and so is Democracy for America's endorsement."
In the 2016 Democratic primary, the organization endorsed Sanders over former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
"Unlike 2016, no candidate has support strong enough for the Democratic Party establishment to clear the field, which means progressives will have an excellent opportunity over the next year to kick the tires on a wide range of different candidates and find the best one to take on Trump," Chamberlain concluded.
On social media, Sanders supporters touted the DFA poll as further fuel for the "Draft Bernie" 2020 campaign launched earlier this month by former staffers for the Vermont senator's 2016 bid.
"If the senator runs (I hope he does), he will have the best organizing program of any 2020 candidate," declared Winnie Wong, founder of People for Bernie.
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