This post has been updated.

Democratic presidential contender Hillary Rodham Clinton raced
through millions of dollars over the summer as she expanded her
campaign�s ground operations and launched a paid television
campaign, spending around nine out of every 10 dollars she
raised in the third quarter.

Clinton pulled in more than $28 million and spent an estimated
$24.8 million, for a burn rate of about 88.7 percent, based on
early numbers released by her campaign. As of Sept. 30, she
still had more than $32 million on hand, campaign spokesman Josh
Schwerin said in a tweet Thursday.

That gives her a small financial cushion over Sen. Bernie
Sanders (I-Vt.), who raised $26 million and had $26.5 million
left in the bank heading into October. But Sanders only spent an
estimated $11.6 million -- less than one out of every two
dollars he raised -- showing how far he has been able to take
his insurgent bid with a relatively lean operation.

[Sanders nearly matches Clinton in fundraising for third quarter]

�What it tells us is that Bernie has financial staying power,�
said Jeff Weaver, Sanders� campaign manager. �We have the
financial wherewithal that will allow for a major campaign
through Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina, Nevada and beyond
in state-by-state, delegate-by-delegate contests for the
Democratic Party nomination.�

The senator from Vermont has recruited volunteers to do much of
his on-the-ground organizing instead of paid staff. He holds
events in a range of large-capacity spaces, from middle school
gyms to basketball arenas, usually decorated only with an
American flag or large campaign sign. He has also incurred
minimal fundraising costs by relying on an army of small donors
who given him money online. About 99 percent of his donations
were for $100 or less, campaign officials said.

Sanders flies coach and is usually accompanied by two or three
aides, who often travel together on the ground in borrowed cars.
When he's in New Hampshire, one of his sons, who lives there,
often drives him around.

The senator has also not yet begun running TV ads, while Clinton
launched her first spots in Iowa and New Hampshire in August.
She will have spent $6.2 million on airtime by the end of
October.

She also has more offices and more paid staff than any other
2016 candidate of either party. Most of them are based in New
Hampshire and Iowa, where she has 17 field offices. Her Brooklyn
headquarters also thrums with scores of paid staffers.

Clinton has stuck to a campaign strategy of policy rollouts
roughly once a week, accompanied by town hall-style organizing
events held in school gymnasiums or similar venues. By design,
the events typically draw a crowd of a few hundred -- nothing
like the mega-rallies Sanders holds.

Keeping things intentionally small avoids a direct comparison
with Sanders�s impressive ground organizing operation, much of
it done on a shoestring. But the intimate events, at which
Clinton frequently takes audience questions, also serve to point
out how much Clinton is spending on fairly basic day-to-day
operations.

Her road events in New Hampshire and Iowa are not obviously
lavish. Accoutrements rarely go beyond folding chairs, taped-up
campaign signs and cases of water. But behind-the-scenes, there
are large numbers of staffers and a hefty cost of private plane
travel for Clinton and her small circle of aides. Clinton is
using a rented jet almost exclusively these days, and flying
several days a week for both public events and private fund-
raising parties.

Her campaign has also invested far more than Sanders in putting
on high-dollar fundraising events, holding nearly 60 such
receptions over the last quarter.

Clinton�s rapid spending rate and Sanders�s ability to nearly
match her fundraising haul last quarter raised new questions
about the financial advantage she was expected to have in the
primary contest. Her third-quarter total surprised some top
campaign bundlers, who had been assured by senior Clinton aides
that the campaign was meeting its goals. Some assumed that meant
that she would bring in an amount closer to the record-setting
$47.5 million she collected in the spring.

The tight money race has further mobilized supporters of Vice
President Joe Biden, who pointed to the drop in Clinton�s
fundraising as a sign that there is ample room for him to get in
the race, even at this late date.

�I think it creates a lot more space,� said one major party
fundraiser who is helping corral support for a possible Biden
bid and requested anonymity to describe private conversations.

[Possible Biden run puts Obama fundraising network on high alert]

Clinton backers shrugged off the idea that her fundraising
indicated that enthusiasm for her bid was dwindling. They noted
that she has raised $75 million so far, well on her way to meet
her $100 million goal for the end of the year.

�It's a terrific result for Hillary,� said Chicago businessman
J.B. Pritzker, a major Clinton fundraiser. �This is the most any
non-incumbent has raised at this point in a presidential
campaign.�

There were also signs that some of her supporters are agitating
for a direct engagement with Sanders, which Clinton has said she
will not do.

Florida donor John Morgan suggested that Clinton should contrast
her more middle-of-the-road policy prescriptions with his far-
left ones.

�Sanders�s numbers are good, but everyone has been afraid to
point out why Sanders can't win,� Morgan wrote in an email. �We
all like what he is saying because it feels so good," he added.
�Fifteen bucks an hour? Great!� he said, referring to Sanders�s
recommended minimum wage. �Redistribute the wealth? How?�

[How Bernie Sanders would transform the nation]

Clinton should not be afraid to note that Sanders is a self-
described democratic socialist, Morgan said.

�Socialism works when you have us guarding you,� Morgan said,
referring to the United States military. �You can't give away
the farm on social programs and be the No. 1 super power in the
world.�

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-
politics/wp/2015/10/01/hillary-clinton-spent-roughly-90-percent-
of-the-money-she-raised-over-the-summer/
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