Biden scares Democratic donors: Withholding up to $90 million due to the president's performance

Joe Biden's stumble in the first presidential debate had an impact both in the polls and within the Democratic Party, where uncertainty about the convention to be held in August prevails. However, the event also financially hit the president's re-election campaign, as some major donors began to withhold sums of up to $90 million. 

The New York Times reported this after speaking with two people with inside knowledge, who spoke on condition of anonymity in order to provide more details about the situation. 

They revealed that after Biden's debate performance, some donors are reluctant to put up more money if the president remains at the top of the Democratic ticket. 

"Some major Democratic donors have told the largest pro-Biden super PAC, Future Forward, that pledges worth roughly $90 million are now on hold if President Biden remains atop the ticket, according to two people who have been briefed on the conversations," the cited media outlet wrote. 

These frozen contributions are directly related to the presidential debate and include amounts up to eight figures that were already on the table.

As for the future of the money, a Future Forward adviser said he was confident that the donations would return to normal once the uncertainty over Biden's candidacy is resolved, which the president himself tried to revive with a lengthy press conference on Thursday night.

"The two people briefed on the frozen pledges declined to say which individual donors were pulling back promised checks, which were estimated to total around or above $90 million. It was not clear how much of the pledged money was earmarked for Future Forward’s super PAC versus its nonprofit arm, which has also been running advertising in key battleground states. The super PAC has been shying away from making major strategic decisions until it gets clarity on who will be atop the ticket, according to a separate person close to the group," the NYT added. 

Future Forward is not just any super PAC, but the top one for the Biden campaign during the early part of the year. It already has TV and digital bookings worth $250 million. These ads are scheduled to air after the Democratic National Convention (DNC).