Democrats may win at fundraising but still lose to GOP at polls

With less than 100 days to go before the November election, the National Republican Campaign Committee envisions picking up 11 House seats — even though it has raised $23 million less than its Democratic counterpart.

“President Obama can raise buckets of money from liberals in Chicago, Manhattan and Hollywood, but all the money in the world can’t hide the Democrats’ job-crushing agenda,” said Andrea Bozek, NRCC spokesperson. “The Democrats’ policies have been so damaging to Americans, they are going to need more money just to stop the bleeding in November.”

Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chairman Steve Israel said Tuesday that Democrats are heading into a “tough election,” but discarded the idea that his party faces a wave election similar to 2010 when Democrats lost 63 seats.

Mr. Israel said that all the GOP talk about suing or impeaching President Obama has been a financial boon for Democrats, firing up its base and pushing swing voters in their direction.

“I think the Republican strategy of lawsuits and impeachment is fundamentally misfiring,” Mr. Israel said. “That just ignites our base in the form of donations, and of calls wanting to volunteer, and in the form of signing pledge cards wanting to vote.”

Mr. Israel said Democrats have raised $23 million more than Republicans this election cycle and said the DCCC raised $1 million in single day this week with fundraising pitches tied to the possibly that House Republicans could push forward with plans to impeach Mr. Obama.

---

SEE ALSO: Foreign crises won’t derail Obama’s fundraising trip, White House says

---

House Speaker John A. Boehner, Ohio Republican, has said that House GOP will not move to impeach Obama, accusing Democrats of playing up the idea to gin up their base.

Earlier this week, NRCC Chairman Rep. Greg Walden, Oregon Republican, predicted that the House GOP is poised to pick up 11 seats in the midterm elections.

“We believe a lot that the drive for 245 [seats] is more than just a rhyming number,” Mr. Walden told Capitol Hill newspaper Roll Call. “We know there’s going to be some puts-and-takes there, but I think you can get to 245 this cycle.”

The latest fundraising reports that showed that the DCCC pulled in more than $25 million over the third quarter of the fundraising calendar, compared to the NRCC, which raised $19.7 million over that same three month period.

The DCCC has nearly $50.9 million cash on hand, while the NRCC has more than $42.5 million in the bank.

Speaking to reporters at the Capitol Hill Club in Washington this month, Liesl Hickey, the executive director of the NRCC, said she is optimistic about the party’s chances of adding to their House majority because of the anti-Obama political climate, which has put Democrats are on the defensive in most races.

“The DCCC laid down their fall TV reserve. We laid down our fall TV reserve,” Ms. Hickey said. “Sixty-eight percent of our spending is on offense. Forty-eight percent of there’s is on defense. Their mission this cycle is to stop the bleeding as they go into the fall. Ours is obviously to expand and maximized our opportunities.”