WASHINGTON — No one seems to be more surprised than Joe Biden that Donald Trump was elected president.
But he can take some solace in the knowledge that big donors remained eager for his candidacy long after voters put the billionaire businessman in the White House.
Biden’s hopes for a new life as a candidate rested on his ability to raise money, and not just for the expected 2020 race. The vice president was a not-so-secret member of the “Big Three” that raised $500,000 in September for the Democratic National Committee, according to a new disclosure, joining Rep. Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii and the national political action committee of Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York.
Schumer (D-N.Y.) officially kicked off his PAC earlier this month, at which time he also set a goal of fundraising between $500,000 and $750,000 for the party. However, as the Washington Post recently reported, he is holding off on considering a presidential bid.
Gabbard, the first two-term Democratic female congresswoman from Hawaii, also will likely run, but unlike Biden, is not waiting until a year from now for money to pour in.
She announced on Sept. 25 that she would not seek reelection to Congress next year, but instead sit out the 2020 contest.
