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Bernie Sanders got his guy in Michigan, but he’s going to have to do more if he wants to successfully shepherd Abdul El-Sayed through the general election due to the huge spending disadvantage Democrats face.
Sanders has more than $22 million in his campaign account, and he didn’t rule out using some of that to help El-Sayed when asked if he’d considered transferring that money to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.
“I’m going to do my best in every way to see that he’s elected to the US Senate,” Sanders told Semafor. “We’re going to do everything we can.” A Democratic strategist said that if Sanders wants to show he can win tough elections, “he needs to put his money where his mouth is and invest the millions he has sitting in the bank account in winning Michigan.”
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The Senate Leadership Fund has $51 million invested in the Michigan race, AIPAC is expected to plow millions in to stop El-Sayed, and former Rep. Mike Rogers, the Republican nominee, is one of the GOP’s better fundraisers. The Democratic Senate Majority PAC is doing all it can to keep up, with $20 million in TV ads reserved and a substantial digital investment as well. Still, there’s no question that Democrats face a sizable money gap.
If Sanders were to transfer money to the DSCC, a recent Supreme Court ruling allows the party’s campaign to spend unlimited money in coordination with a candidate, and likely at more favorable rates than super PACs. El-Sayed was heavily outspent in the primary against Democratic Rep. Haley Stevens, D-Mich., but that could pale in comparison to what he’ll grapple with between now and November.
Sanders said “of course” he’s concerned about the money gap, but argued El-Sayed can help make it up at the grassroots level.
“The Republican oligarchs will do everything they can to defeat them, and that is a legitimate concern,” Sanders said. “Our antidote, the way we fight back, is by mobilizing many, many thousands of people at the grassroots level. And Abdul did a great job in that during his primary, and I think you’re going to see that increase during the general.”
The Democratic strategist warned Sanders against keeping his distance: “Nothing would be more disastrous for his ‘movement’ than hanging his candidate out to dry and losing a pivotal seat for Senate control.”