McAuliffe pulls in $8 million for Biden at Virginia fundraiser

• His campaign is using its cash advantage over former President Trump's team to go big on TV ad campaigns — including a $50 million buy this month.

Zoom in: Hosted by former Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D) in his McLean backyard, Tuesday's event is the largest non-auditorium Biden fundraiser of this election cycle. It sold out in seven days, according to Democratic officials.

• The biggest givers will receive a two-dimensional token for their five-figure generosity: A photo with two presidents.

By the numbers: Tonight's event is a two-tiered affair, with nearly 500 guests booked for a cocktail reception on McAuliffe's lawn.

• For roughly 100 high rollers, dinner will be served on McAuliffe's tennis court under air-conditioned tents. Those donors are expected to contribute $50,000 to $250,000.
• Donations by the lawn guests are in the $1,000 to $6,600 range.
• It's the third iteration of a successful formula first tried in New York City in March, where Democratic donors got to mingle with two or three presidents in a single evening.
• Three days ago, Biden raised $30 million in Los Angeles with celebrities and former President Obama.

Zoom out: For most of the year, Biden's fundraising apparatus has trounced Trump's, out-raising him in the first four months and using its cash advantage to build up a ground operation and broadcast TV ads.

• But last month, Trump and his various committees raised more money than the sitting president, and now Biden's team is trying to answer Trump's turbocharged fundraising effort

• He also has dispatched his Cabinet to appeal to donors across the country.

Between the lines: Biden is sometimes his most candid in front of donors, telling them that he doesn't believe bad polls and trotting out news lines of attack against Trump.

• His campaign has booked some $50 million in TV ads this month, with one branding Trump a "convicted criminal."

The bottom line: McAuliffe, who also served as chair of the Democratic National Committee, is one of his party's most prolific fundraisers.

• As a longtime friend of Biden's — and the Clintons' — the former governor would be well positioned for a high-profile position in a Biden second term.