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CNBC
a day ago
- Business
- CNBC
Republican Party has nearly five times more cash on hand than the Democrats
The Republican National Committee has almost five times the cash on hand as its Democratic counterpart, as Democrats seek to regain their footing following a disappointing 2024 cycle. The RNC reported having $72 million on hand at the end of May, compared to just $15 million for the DNC, according to campaign filings out Friday. While the RNC has for months held a cash advantage over the Democratic National Committee, the $57 million gap is the widest disparity between the two parties since at least July 2020, according to California Target Book's Rob Pyers. It's still early, but the GOP's cash edge could give the party an early boost as it looks to build out campaign infrastructure ahead of next year's midterms. "The single most important thing the DNC can and should be doing right now is raising money," Democratic strategist Adrienne Elrod told CNBC. The filings come as the DNC has faced internal tension since President Donald Trump's return to the White House. Earlier this month, leaders of two large labor unions each declined their nominations to continue serving on the committee, dealing a blow to Chair Ken Martin. Martin has also overseen internal divisions over ex-DNC Vice Chair David Hogg's bid to challenge sitting Democratic incumbents. Hogg stepped down from his role earlier this month amid backlash. Some Democrats say that the fundraising gap underscores deeper concerns within the party. "The base of the party and donors alike do not have confidence in the direction of the party," said Cooper Teboe, a Democratic strategist in Silicon Valley. Teboe said that the party has not presented "a positive, inspiring vision." The DNC, however, points to a surge in grassroots support. The party says it raised roughly $40 million in individual donations since Martin became chair in February, a record for that four-month period. The contributions go to a range of areas, according to the DNC, including "building up critical infrastructure from tech to organizing to in-state investments for critical, target races." "This is only the start, but it's a record-setting start that allows Democrats to meaningfully invest in every part of the country," Martin said in a statement. The DNC's war chest is roughly double what it held during the same period in 2017, suggesting there is time for them to catch up. "The goals Chair Martin has set out — investing in all 50 states and building the state of-the-art infrastructure necessary to win back the White House in 2028 — are ambitious and necessary, but they can only be achieved by raising money," Elrod said. Looking ahead, Teboe said that Democrats may be successful in next year's midterms "as a reaction to Trump's overreach but it will take a new generation of voices to get the party out of this mess." "Those voices will emerge in the 2028 primary and we will have the chance to rebuild a stronger Democratic Party outside of the influence of the old guard that seems incapable of understanding what motivates normal Americans," he said. The Republicans' money advantage comes after a 2024 election cycle during which Tesla founder Elon Musk poured nearly $300 million into helping elect Republicans. Musk's surge of donations to help elect Trump certainly took some pressure off the rest of the party's fundraising apparatus. It's unclear what the RNC might have decided to pay for last year's elections, were it not for Musk's millions. Musk last month said that he was going to do "a lot less" political spending in the future. It's also unclear how Trump will use the millions he has raised in a group of PACs since he won the November election. Should Trump choose to donate to Republican candidates and get out the vote efforts next year, the RNC could again find itself under less pressure to shell out cash than the DNC. But Trump's financial support has traditionally not been geared towards helping the party at large. Rather, Trump has contributed relatively small amounts to help elect his closest allies. He has also played a significant role in Republican primary races, endorsing MAGA candidates who, in some cases, have struggled to win the backing of moderate Republicans and independent voters.
Yahoo
13-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
USDA cuts programs that supply local food to schools, food banks
Mar. 12—The U.S. Department of Agriculture canceled contracts with Maine — and most other states — that provided financial assistance, distributed fresh food and incentivized the purchase of locally grown food. The change comes as one in eight Mainers — about 180,000 people — faces hunger, according to data collected by the national nonprofit Feeding America. That includes roughly 45,000 children, about 20% of the state's total population under 18. In October, the USDA announced it was extending its Local Foods for Schools program, which reimbursed schools in Maine and throughout the country for purchasing local food, for another year, said Maine Department of Education spokesperson Chloe Teboe. More than 40 states participated in the program during its first — and now only — year, she said. "However, on Friday, March 7, 2025, the Maine Department of Education (DOE) received a termination notice for that agreement," Teboe wrote in an email Wednesday afternoon. Maine schools were supposed to get another $2.78 million this spring for use over the next three years, Teboe said. The school food program included $776,210 for Maine, which funded more than $120,000 in purchases from historically "underserved producers," a designation that includes farmers and ranchers who are just starting out, veterans, and those who are socially disadvantaged or who have limited resources, according to data collected by the USDA. In addition to the Local Food for Schools agreement, the USDA also terminated its Local Food Purchase Assistance program, which provided funding to states, including Maine, to purchase local food to serve feeding programs, food banks and other organizations that aid underserved populations. That program funded more than $1.4 million in purchases from 75 different producers, 74 of which were considered "underserved," according to USDA data. A USDA spokesperson said that the cancellation "isn't an abrupt shift," stating that the department released more than $500 million in previously obligated funds last week. They criticized the Biden administration for prioritizing "short-term programs with no plan for longevity." "As a pandemic-era program, LFPA will now be sunsetted at the end of the performance period, marking a return to long-term, fiscally responsible initiatives," the spokesperson said in an email Wednesday. "The COVID era is over — USDA's approach to nutrition programs will reflect that reality moving forward." The LFPA program helped improve food security in Maine while creating market opportunities for local farmers, said Jim Britt, director of communications for the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry. He said the department will continue advocating for policies to strengthen the local agricultural economy. "The loss of LFPA, as well as the Local Food for Schools program, funding undoubtedly presents challenges for Maine's agricultural community, which had made inroads building capacity to meet the market demand created by these programs," Britt said in a written statement. "The suddenness and timing of the decision to terminate the programs is particularly difficult given that farmers had already made 2025 crop decisions and investments." MAJOR CUTS FOR FOOD BANK Britt said the Good Shepherd Food Bank has played a key role in distributing funding and food throughout the state. But the Auburn-based food bank said the cuts would create major hurdles for its work. The canceled funding extension would have meant another $1.25 million for Maine over three years, the food bank said. "This change represents a projected loss of 500,000 to 600,000 pounds of fresh, local produce Good Shepherd Food Bank would have distributed, through its partners, to families facing food insecurity," the group said. That could mean the loss of a half-million meals, based on standards set by Feeding America. The national organization considers 1.2 pounds roughly the weight of a "meal." Good Shepherd President Heather Paquette doesn't expect the food bank will be able to fill that funding gap this year. Good Shepherd, which distributes about 40 million meals per year, is the state's only Feeding America-affiliated food bank, she said on a phone call Wednesday night. She said the group will also face cuts of at least 50% of the total food it distributes through another USDA program called The Emergency Food Assistance Program, which provides cases of American-grown food to participating states. Good Shepherd currently distributes approximately 500,000 pounds of food through that program each month, she said. That's about a fifth of all the food it distributes. "It's a huge piece of the work that we do," she said. "Our TEFAP has been cut by a minimum of 50%, with a lot of uncertainty beyond that." The food bank usually sees its statewide distribution increase by at least 10% each year, Paquette said. And while Maine has a robust network of nonprofits, businesses and state agencies that work together to fight hunger, planning for the future becomes extremely difficult when funding that should have been guaranteed falls through, she said. "Our donations are healthy, (but) we cannot expect them to keep pace" with need, Paquette said. "All indications from our partner agencies is that we should be expecting another significant increase (in need)." SIGNIFICANT CHALLENGES EXPECTED Anna Korsen, program director at Full Plates Full Potential, said the cuts to Local Food for Schools will bring significant challenges to Maine schools and students and families who rely on school lunches. "It was this really great program, and it really worked. We saw schools purchasing more local food than we had ever seen in the past," she said. In the 2022-23 school year, prior to the federal program's launch, Maine schools spent only about $128,000 on local food, Korsen said. But that figure more than quadrupled the following year. School food budgets are already tight — usually around $4 per child, she said — making it difficult for districts to purchase high-quality ingredients and develop nourishing meals. "They're kind of forced to buy the cheapest food sometimes. So having an incentive program ... that just allows them to buy this higher-quality food, which they want to do," Korsen said. She said the cancellation of what seemed to be a settled contract was particularly troubling. "That's concerning. How was that able to happen?" Korsen said. "It feels like the rug is being pulled out from under our schools." Copy the Story Link
