Well, you got the first part right, but the second is just you being a typical conservative.
Republicans know their base. And they know how to motivate them. And they are far better strategists, for one, because they are smart enough not to play fair.
Democrats want to play fair, which is kind of the philosphy behind most democrat minded people - fairness. The problem is, this creates a total asymmetry when it comes to directly competing with the republicans. Democrats are fighting stupid while republicans are fighting smart.
Also, the democrats really fucked up by not playing fair the one time they needed to - with Bernie Sanders. They fucked him and alienated much of their base, not to mention many independents who then voted for Trump, again because they are shit strategists. I think this is probably why they are having so much trouble raising money now, despite the disaster that is the current Republican administration that I'm sure you're convinced is just fine aside from the "fake news reports and witch hunt."
However, it must be noted that the republicans have an easier time knowing their base because it is almost totally homogenous. It's basically rich white men, white men who think they are going to be rich, and poor, rural, white men and women. It's a lot easier to appeal to that group than it is the heterogenous groups of people that comprise the Democratic Party at large, all with somewhat disparate viewpoints.
