Biden: ‘I know I’m the frontrunner’ in 2020 race
Former Vice President Joe Biden (D) expressed confidence in his campaign’s strength and dismissed concerns over his fundraising pace in an interview aired on Sunday night.
In a “60 Minutes” interview with anchor Norah O’Donnell, Biden vowed to “flat [out] beat” both Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who have vied for the mantle of runner-up in recent months while trailing Biden in most polling.
{mosads}”Let’s talk about the state of the race because it has tightened. Do you still consider yourself the frontrunner?” asked O’Donnell.
“I know I’m the frontrunner,” responded Biden. “Find me a national poll with a notable…a couple exceptions. But look, this is a marathon.”
“You have less than $9 million in the bank,” O’Donnell pressed the vice president, adding: “Bernie Sanders has 30…nearly $34 million in the bank. Senator Warren has $26 million. How do you compete against that?”
“I just flat [out] beat them,” Biden said. “We’re on a course to do extremely well. I’m not…I’m not worried about being able to fund this campaign. i really am not, truly.”
Biden’s fundraising declined by $7 million between the second and third-quarters of 2019, and in the most recent filing period trailed Sanders, Warren, and South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg (D) in donations.
The former vice president has since shifted on his opposition to super PACs, and in a statement this week the Biden campaign indicated that he would accept aid from such organizations in a general election matchup against President Trump.
“In this time of political crisis, it is not surprising that those who are dedicated to defeating Donald Trump are organizing in every way permitted by current law to bring an end to his disastrous presidency,” his deputy campaign canager Kate Bedingfield said. “Nothing changes unless we defeat Donald Trump.”
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