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👋 A tale of two budgets: One campaign spent $900M while the other kept $36M in the bank. Guess which one's offering to help pay the other's debts? Let's talk campaign finance gone wrong.

Read time: 3 minutes | 726 words

FROM THE WOLF

“Democrats kept everybody in the dark about how bad things were…” (Video)

INSIGHT

💰 Campaign Spending | By the Numbers

How did Kamala Harris spend over $1 billion dollars on her campaign and end up $20 million in debt?

Overall Spending

• Harris campaign: Spent approximately $900 million by mid-October, with total expenditures likely exceeding $1 billion

• Trump campaign: Spent about $345 million by mid-October

Advertising

• Harris: Allocated nearly $700 million to advertising. Spent six figures on flying banners over NFL games in swing states. Invested approximately $450,000 daily on ads displayed on the Las Vegas Sphere in Nevada.

• Trump: Spent $147 million on radio, TV, and digital ads according to FEC filings, with projections of $273 million by Election Day.

Digital Platforms

• Harris: Focused on Google, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and TikTok.

• Trump: Emphasized YouTube, Twitch, and X (formerly Twitter).

Targeted Spending

• Harris: Employed a broad, uniform messaging strategy across battleground states.

• Trump: Used a more localized, targeted approach in swing states.

Celebrity Endorsements

• Harris: Paid $1 million just to Oprah Winfrey's production company, among other celebrity endorsements.

• Trump: No information on celebrity endorsement spending (so likely $0).

Staff and Operations

• Harris: Spent over $56 million on payroll and payroll taxes in three months. Had approximately 1,100 staffers combined with the Democratic National Committee in July 2024. Allocated more than $100 million to various consulting and marketing firms

• Trump: Had a significantly smaller official campaign payroll, with only 11 staff members as of August 2024. Combined with the Republican National Committee, had about 300 staffers on payroll in July 2024. Utilized creative accounting methods to reallocate expenses from his campaign committee to various Republican Party accounts.

Outcome

• Harris: Despite raising over $1 billion, the campaign reportedly ended with at least $20 million in debt

• Trump: Maintained a cash reserve of $36 million by mid-October and has now offered to help pay for Kamala’s debts.

Go Deeper: How Trump’s Win Effects You.

STORY 

📈 The History of Campaign Spending

The history of American campaign finance reveals a dramatic transformation from a modest, regulated system into a multi-billion dollar ecosystem driven by technology and legal changes.

1970s - Early Regulation Era: Watergate sparked unprecedented campaign finance reform, establishing the FEC and public financing system. Presidential candidates received matching funds in exchange for accepting spending limits and disclosure requirements.

• 1976 Race: Carter ($33.4M) vs. Ford ($35.8M)

• Primary spending limits introduced at $10M

• Individual contributions capped at $1,000

• First public funding distributed: $21.8M per major party nominee

1980s - Soft Money Emergence: Parties exploited "soft money" loopholes while Reagan pioneered direct mail fundraising. PACs gained influence as total campaign spending doubled from previous decade.

• 1980: Reagan ($28.3M) vs. Carter ($35.3M)

• 1984: Reagan ($70.2M) vs. Mondale ($27.4M)

• 1988: Bush Sr. ($67.1M) vs. Dukakis ($65.1M)

• Total PAC contributions increased from $55.2M to $151.4M

1990s - Soft Money Peak: Soft money contributions exploded as parties mastered fundraising. Clinton introduced donor events and bundling, while Perot showed self-funding potential.

• 1992: Clinton ($92.2M) vs. Bush Sr. ($92.6M)

• 1996: Clinton ($123.3M) vs. Dole ($116.8M)

• Soft money reached $498M by decade's end

• Perot spent $72M of personal funds in 1992

2000s - Reform and Digital Revolution: McCain-Feingold banned soft money, but 527 groups emerged. Obama's 2008 campaign transformed fundraising through online small-dollar donations.

• 2000: Bush Jr. ($193.1M) vs. Gore ($132.8M)

• 2004: Bush Jr. ($367.2M) vs. Kerry ($328.5M)

• 2008: Obama ($745M) vs. McCain ($333M)

• Online donations grew from $50M in 2000 to $1.6B in 2008

2010s - Super PAC Era: Citizens United unleashed corporate spending through Super PACs. Digital fundraising matured via social media while small-dollar donations reached record heights.

• 2012: Obama ($722M) vs. Romney ($449M)

• 2016: Clinton ($563M) vs. Trump ($333M)

• Super PAC spending hit $1.1B in 2016

• Digital ad spending grew to $1.4B in 2016

• Average House campaign cost reached $1.5M

• Average Senate campaign cost reached $10.4M

The exponential growth in campaign spending over five decades reflects not just inflation, but fundamental shifts in how American democracy finances its elections—from grassroots donations to Super PACs, direct mail to digital fundraising, and party control to independent expenditures.

ACTION 

The 6-Month Rule: Cash Reserves > Revenue Games

The Reality: Trump kept a $36M war chest while Harris burned through $1B and ended up $20M in debt. One survived market changes, the other didn't. Smart businesses keep 6 months of operating costs in reserves, while over 80% of failures cite cash flow problems. One survives market changes, the other folds.

Context: Modern business success comes from capital efficiency – converting high revenue moments into lasting reserves.

The Power Move: Lead With Reserves Over Revenue

• Calculate 6 months of operating costs - that's your minimum

• Automate monthly reserve deposits

• Run lean inventory with just-in-time ordering

• Make capital efficiency your moat

• Turn unused assets into cash

The Proof:

• 6-month cushion = crisis-proof operations

• Lean inventory = higher cash availability

• Market crashes become buying opportunities

• "Dead" assets become war chest fuel

Why it works: Markets don't reward the fastest growers. They reward the survivors.

Start tomorrow: Multiple your monthly burn by 6. That's your fortress target.

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