While not required by law, it is a longstanding tradition for former presidents to establish a presidential library after leaving office.
Such an endeavor requires significant donor involvement, but that is quickly becoming a problem for Former President Joe Biden.
Donors are reportedly taking the same approach to Biden as they did during the election, holding back funding, which is a crushing blow to the Democrat and his legacy.
During the waning days of Biden’s abbreviated presidential campaign, the money train dried up.
After Biden’s disastrous June 2024 debate against Donald Trump, donors in significant numbers decided to stop flushing money down the drain and said they would not contribute until Biden exited the race.
Abigail Disney was one of the high-profile donors who took that approach to Biden, stating, “This is realism, not disrespect.”
She continued, “If Biden does not step down the Democrats will lose. Of that I am absolutely certain. The consequences for the loss will be genuinely dire.”
Kamala Harris had 107 days to run for office, and she was touted to have garnered a fairly significant lead once it was announced that she was taking the campaign reins from Biden.
But, just as we saw in the 2020 presidential primary race, the more people learned about Harris, the more they disliked her.
Yet, most people blamed Biden's delayed exit rather than Harris’s horrible campaign strategy.
One donor stated, "Why did Joe Biden hold on for as long as he did? He should have not concealed his (health) and dropped out a lot sooner."
Biden will have to raise hundreds of millions (Obama’s library is reportedly costing more than $800 million to build) for his library project to come to fruition, but donors are not writing checks.
Reports broke this week that potential contributors are upset with backlash from Biden’s team and are feeling “residual anger” from Biden's ill-fated quest for a second term when he clearly had some health issues. John Morgan, a Florida-based personal injury lawyer and longtime Democratic Party supporter, explained, “I don’t believe a library will ever be built unless it’s a bookmobile from the old days.”
He continued, “Couple [Biden’s age and medical issues] with the perception that [the party’s] woes rest with his decision to seek a second term, and we have the Hindenburg heading straight towards us. I want an $800,000 refund.”
This is just devastating for Biden, whom his camp regularly calls the most “consequential president of our time.” I am sure Biden will get some money, but I highly doubt his library will be anything near as gaudy or expansive as Obama’s.
