It's Giving SCAM: Trump's Latest Haul
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How much did Trump claim to raise at the Palm Beach fundraiser and can that $50 million be verified?
Trump trounces Biden. That is the message the former president's allies are spreading after last weekend's Palm Beach fundraiser. According to the Trump campaign, the Saturday evening event raked in more than $50 million. That's nearly double the $26 million that Joe Biden's Radio City Music Hall function raised last month. Now, to be clear, that $50 million figure can't be independently verified ahead of the Trump campaign's finance filings later this year. I wouldn't be shocked though if the former president is fudging the numbers somehow. But let's take them at their word for the time being. This is a big victory for Donald Trump. No one can deny that. However, while Trump won this fundraising battle, he is losing the fundraising war.
The Democratic Party raised more than $90 million in March. Add that to what they've already raised, and they have a whopping $192 million heading into the spring. Meanwhile, the Trump campaign and the RNC raised just $65.6 million in March, giving them a total of $93 million on hand. The Democrats' war chest is more than twice the size of the Republicans. So yes, Donald Trump had a good night in Palm Beach, but he needs many, many more good nights in order to catch up with the Democrats.
How does Trump's reported fundraiser compare to Democratic fundraising totals in March?
And that's going to be hard because the GOP's billionaire donors, they know a lot of that money that they're going to give is not going to put ads on the airwaves or hire campaign staff, but instead flows straight toward Donald Trump's legal bills, literally. As reported by The New York Times, the first $6,600 of any and all contributions go to Trump's campaign. The next $5,000 go to his Save America PAC, AKA the political account he is using to put his legal bills. That is the maximum amount allowed under federal rules. The RNC then gets the next 400 or so thousand dollars. And of course, we know that Donald Trump's daughter-in-law now helms that organization. Finally, if there's any money left over, then and only then do state Republican parties get to beg for some pennies.
So I wouldn't be surprised if the former president's billionaire backers are less generous going forward. And that is hardly the end of Trump's financial problems.
And another issue facing the Trump campaign is small dollar donations. Obviously, this was a billionaire fundraiser last night. But small dollar donations, an issue that they're facing. The Biden campaign touting their small dollar donations, though. There was a press release that went out from them claiming that 96% of their donations this last quarter were under $200. Now, we also heard from Trump last night as he headed into that big fundraiser, and he repeated lines that we typically hear on the campaign trail.
And people are just wanting change.
How are Trump donations being allocated between campaign, PAC, RNC, and state parties?
The rich people want it. The poor people want it. Everybody wants change. Our country is really doing poorly.
The key soundbite there, the rich people want change, the poor people want change. Well, actually, Donald, as that reporter pointed out, it doesn't seem like middle and lower income Americans want change. Or if they do, you're certainly not the change they're interested in because you're not getting any small dollar donations. The only folks keeping your campaign afloat are your billionaire buddies, and none of them are all that fond of you. Case in point, there was a development in Trump's New York civil fraud saga this weekend. As reported by the Daily Beast, Knight Specialty Insurance, the company owned by mega-donor Don Hanke that swooped in to bail out Trump with a $175 million bond, well, it is unlicensed in New York.
And what's more, the company's lawyers wrote up a bizarre contract that doesn't actually promise it will pay if the former president loses his bank fraud case on appeal. Rather, it says Trump will pay, which negates the whole point of an insurance company guarantee. In other words, Trump's billionaire backers are only so loyal to him. They may be in for a penny, but they're not in for a pound, let alone several million pounds. I spoke with former Republican Congressman Adam Kinzinger about all of this earlier today.
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Chapters
7 chapters
1
How much did Trump claim to raise at the Palm Beach fundraiser and can that $50 million be verified?
0:00–1:18
2
How does Trump's reported fundraiser compare to Democratic fundraising totals in March?
1:18–2:50
3
How are Trump donations being allocated between campaign, PAC, RNC, and state parties?
2:50–4:11
4
Why might billionaire donors limit their support for Trump despite big headline numbers?
4:11–5:25
5
Why is Trump struggling with small-dollar donations compared to Biden's grassroots fundraising?
5:25–6:43
6
How does Adam Kinzinger explain the role of 'cult' dynamics and alleged elder abuse in Trump donations?
6:43–7:38
7
What should we watch for in upcoming finance filings to tell if the $50 million was real or smoke and mirrors?
7:38–9:01
Speakers
3 identifiedMore from The Don Lemon Show
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