Wednesday, January 8, 2020

Democratic Presidential candidates out raised Trump 3:1 in 4th Quarter 2019


Democrats raised $137 million in 4th quarter 2019, compared to $46 million for Trump.  Those are the facts.

But depending where you get your news from, you might have gotten a totally different impression about what happened because it's all about the spin.

According to Newsweek:  "Donald Trump Raised More Money Than All Top Democrats." Factually true, but essentially misleading. (Touchberry, 2020)

The New York Times headline was: "Cash-Rich Democrats..." That sounds a bit more accurate.

The Times also provided a few more details, like the fact that Sanders' $34.5 million total was the largest sum for any Democrat in any quarter so far.  And that Sanders, Biden and Yang all had their best quarters to date.  (Goldmacher & Kaplan, 2020)

That certainly paints a very different picture from the one presented by Newsweek.

Just another reminder that words matter, as does the reliability of your sources.  And don't forget to read the fine print.  The devil is in the details.


Touchberry, R. (2020, January 2)  Donald Trump Raised More Money Than All Top Democratic Presidential Opponents In Last Quarter Of 2019.  newsweek.com.  Retrieved January 8, 2020, from

Goldmacher, S. & Kaplan, T. (2020, January 2) Cash Rich Democrats Brace for Long Fight as Trump Hoards Money.  nytimes.com.  Retrieved January 8, 2020, from

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