Fundraising, Big Red Car? Really?
Big Red Car here on a glorious crisp day in the ATX — On Earth as it is in Texas, y’all!
[Somebody emailed me and told me that was an obnoxious way to open a blog post, so this one is for you, pal. You know who you are and I love you all the same. Get over your whiny, thin-skinned, defeated-liberal self and NO the popular vote is not the “thing.” Sheesh! Pay up on your bet, you deadbeat.]
Can a businessman run a more cost effective campaign than a politician?
The numbers are in and it appears to be the truth.
Let’s dig into the numbers — this is intended as a lesson for CEOs, not a political commentary.
Where is the money, Big Red Car?
The money sits in a few easily identifiable pots. The most recent available numbers are from late October, so they may change a little but not likely in their comparison.
1. The CAMPAIGN, which is the big pot of money each candidate solicits directly.
2. The Party and joint fundraising committees, wherein the candidate conducts fundraising in concert with the national party and the state parties. This money is shared amongst the participants though much of it goes to the candidate. The candidate is, after all, the headliner for such events. There is a lot of mischief afoot in these events as the rules are quite foggy and subject to enormous abuses. Contribution ceilings are much higher for such events than they are for direct contributions to the campaign. Something nobody pays attention to because neither party really wants to reform the obscenity of money in politics.
3. SuperPACs — the supposedly independent entities which support candidates and issues but which are forbidden under the law from coordinating their efforts with either the candidate or the campaign — yeah, right! Have you ever thought about owning a bridge in Brooklyn? I can get you a deal on one.
The Campaigns — fundraising
The HRC Campaign directly raised $556MM — $556,000,000.
The DJT Campaign raised $248MM.
HRC outraised DJT by more than a hundred percent. Wow!
In addition, some $50M came from DJT personally and maybe as much as twice that number.
HRC smoked DJT at the Campaign level.
The Party, joint fundraising committees
HRC received $544MM from these events. [HRC had a much richer sharing ratio with the other co-sponsors. Almost all of the money raised went to her campaign.]
DJT received $487MM. [DJT had a much leaner sharing ratio with the other co-sponsors. He did not receive the same proportion of funds as HRC did.]
This must be considered in the light of two things:
1. HRC had the DNC working hand in glove with her and was able to tap into an existing network created by her husband, Horny, and the Obama campaigns to say nothing of the wholesale championing of her campaign by the DNC.
2. The Donald was new at this stuff and had no organization foundation from which to launch these events. He also had the active opposition of the #NeverTrump crowd and the GOPe (the traitors like the Bushes, Romney, Sen Flake, Sen Sasse), reluctant donors poisoned by the aforementioned scoundrels, and opposing candidates who failed to meet their pledge to support their party’s candidate. Bit of an uphill slog to be sure.
Still, Trump — a showman — did, comparatively, very well. Next time around, he will crush this segment of the fundraising pie. Still, advantage HRC.
The SuperPACs — fundraising
HRC SuperPACs raised $188MM.
DJT SuperPACs raised $60MM.
HRC smoked DJT in the SuperPAC arena. A more than three times barbed wire enema.
HRC had the advantage of some of the SuperPACs having been formed to support President Obama in 2008 and 2012. Continuity in fundraising is a lovely thing.
Complications — fundraising
The Republicans typically rely upon the largesse of some high net worth donors — the Evil Koch Brothers, as an example, who when they are not wintering over in Hell are reliable SuperPAC donors — to fill the campaign coffers of their candidate. This year, that did not materialize.
This is one area in which the GOPe did, effectively, punish The Donald. And in so doing, they have defeated themselves. They have destroyed whatever influence they might have had.
DJT will have Mitt over for a chat, but he is really just showing the public his magnanimous nature and the fact that Mitt Romney will come to him to genuflect, apologize, and kiss his ring. Winning cures a lot of problems.
Bottom line it, Big Red Car
Here’s the big takeaway:
1. HRC whipped DJT at the alms plate. She outraised him handily. DJT, however, won the election which suggests that the spending of the money is more important than the raising of the money though DJT was no slouch when it came to raising money.
2. The staggering importance of DJT’s earned media — the free mentions on the news and on social media — will continue to be studied and it will be an interesting exercise to try to convert this into some level of investment. Convert it to numbers. What was it worth?
3. HRC received an equally powerful push from the MSM, the lesser media, the punditry, the pollsters — all of whom acted like HRC campaign functionaries with their direct assistance (sending her debate questions, dropping stories by for editing, coordinating articles with travel plans, ugh) and their relentless pounding of DJT. What was that all worth?
If a media outlet prints a story which is hysterically critical of DJT is it not the same as the HRC campaign itself running an ad? In monetary terms what was this worth?
In spite of all of this, DJT won because he understood the market better — the guy won the Rust Belt, where no Republican had been able to make a dent in decades. This was a Democrat stronghold with the unions providing a deep root and control of many votes. DJT went into the lion’s den and came back with its teeth. Salute!
One more time, BRC, what did we learn?
DJT ran a comparatively less grandiose campaign on a much tighter budget and won. Was he lean, nimble, agile on purpose? By accident? Forced upon him by the realities of the fundraising?
Was it his personal hustle and hard work? DJT is a hustler par excellence and, arguably, HRC spent a lot of time on the couch.
Look at where DJT spent time and see where he won. HRC did not go to the Rust Belt and guess what? The Rust Belt did not vote for her. Hmmmm. Is it really that easy and obvious? Occam’s Razor, y’all?
CEOs of young companies need to consider this learning carefully. DJT knocked off a better funded opponent — with the power of the White House on her side as well as the MSM, the lesser media, the punditry, the pollsters. How?
Think about this and see what you can learn from it? Better product?
Noboby will ever really know though the same discredited MSM, et al, will spend the next year ‘splaining it to us. [Why does anyone listen to people who got it all so hopelessly wrong? It was the anger from 2014. They all missed it.]
But, hey, what the Hell do I really know anyway? I’m just a Big Red Car! Be good to yourself and it’s only a few days until the Trump administration takes root. Say a prayer for yourself, your loved ones, the new President.
