The numbers from both campaigns are now in. Yesterday, Hillary Clinton’s campaign reported an impressive haul of $37 million, with an extra $18 million raised for the DNC and local Democratic parties for downballot Democrats. The total for Clinton’s campaign stands at an impressive $112 million for 2015, well over their goal of $100 million.
Today, the Sanders Campaign also released their numbers. In Q4 they raised a total of $33 million, bringing their annual total to $73 million.
Clinton’s campaign enters 2016 with $38 million cash on hand, Sanders — with $28.4 million.
To quote the Washington Post,
While Clinton has coordinated with the National Democratic Committee to raise an additional $18 million, Sanders has not replicated those efforts, despite an arrangement with the national party that allows him to do so.
Clinton continues to make party-building one of major focus for her campaign. It appears that at this stage Sanders is focused mostly on winning the primaries. This is not so good for a campaign that is constantly talking about bringing new voters to the polls and electing more Democrats to office. I leave you to draw your own conclusions.
Update: This will hardly be convincing to many Sanders’ supporters (at least many on this site), but for comparison’s sake, here are the corresponding numbers from 2007 (Clinton vs Obama)
Through December 31, 2007, Hillary Clinton raised $107 million, with an extra $11 million for the Democratic Party. Barack Obama raised $102 million with an extra $1.7 million for the Democratic Party. Remember this was still 2007 and Obama ran as the insurgent and the underdog for most of the year. The profile of his donors was similar to what Sanders is managing now. And YET Obama found a way to raise these $1.7 million for the party.
Update II: I believe in party unity and in mending fences once the nominee is decided. And I will state again that I will work for and vote for the election of Sanders if he becomes the nominee. This is not the point. In diary over diary here on this site, Sanders supporters have demanded substance (i.e. policies) over biography. Yet the substance, when presented, seems to provoke outrage. I believe that it should be pointed out quite unequivocally that while Hillary Clinton has campaigned for and fundraised for downballot Democrats (consistently!! — as the 2007 numbers demonstrate as well), Sanders has not. These are the facts.
In many of the responses downthread, Sanders’ supporters are reacting with anything between happiness and glee that Sanders has not, in fact, contributed to the DNC. Like Jack Nicholson says to the little dog Verdell in As Good As It Gets, “Where’s the trust?” Granted, the DNC and the Sanders campaign had their spat. But I believe the ongoing lawsuit against the DNC by the Sanders campaign, as well as Sanders’ apparent reluctance to live up to the terms of the fundraising agreement with the DNC are much more damaging to party unity and to Sanders’ image, than any diary title I may choose. Still, it is encouraging to see that most Sanders’ supporters will be “OK” with Hillary Clinton in the General Election.