Former Obama advisers hosting the "Pod Save America" podcast stated on Friday that major Democratic donors are withholding funds despite optimistic polling for the November midterms. The hosts, speaking at the Texas Tribune Festival, linked the funding gap to lingering frustration over the 2024 election results and fears of political retribution. Dan Pfeiffer noted that Democrats have significantly less money to work with than Republicans, even as Republican struggles in purple states like Texas create opportunities. Tommy Vietor argued that the disparity between spending restraints and the potential for a historic win is causing operatives to voice frustration that traditional big donors are not viewing the cycle as a generational opportunity. Vietor said it feels like a moment when all the biggest donors should be pushing their chips in, rather than holding back because of concerns about being targeted by Donald Trump. Pfeiffer described a huge shift in the funding approach within the large donor community since 2024, attributing it to anger over how the previous election went and the perception that a billion dollars was lit on fire. He added that fear of business targeting, FBI scrutiny, and regulatory oversight has limited money available for campaigns. Pfeiffer suggested this midterm could lead to one of the largest swings in American history, potentially resembling the realigning election of 1994 rather than 2006. Julian Epstein, a Democratic consultant, rejected these claims in a statement to Fox News Digital. He argued that the "blue tsunami" narrative is overstated, noting that the margin of error in 40 battleground congressional districts is approximately 2%. Epstein stated that donors are holding back because Democrats lack an attractive positive agenda and have lower approval ratings than the president. He claimed Democrats have shifted from building to tax-and-spend redistributionist big government welfare. Mary Marslender, a Republican consultant, told Fox News Digital that she agreed with the podcasters' assessment. She stated that major Democratic donors remain frustrated by the 2024 cycle fallout and are concerned about the party's direction. Marslender cited Kamala Harris' campaign, which she said spent $1.5 billion in 15 weeks while losing key demographics and benchmarks. She argued that donors who contributed eight-figure sums in 2024 noticed a poor return on investment and are less willing to spend this cycle. Marslender also noted that many major donors have slowed contributions due to concerns about the party's shift toward socialist policies, including calls to destroy financial institutions.