Analysis suggests that although former President Donald Trump, the leading Republican presidential candidate, has virtually driven a wedge into the presidential race in the Republican primary, he is having a hard time collecting donations. He said donors are reluctant to give money because they fear it will be used to cover his legal costs.<\/p>\n
On the 24th, the Washington Post (WP) reported that there is growing concern among high-ranking Republicans and some supporters in Washington DC that former President Trump is spending too much political money on legal fees and that small donations are slowing down. Currently, former President Trump is lagging President Joe Biden in both the amount of donations and the number of donors. As of the end of last month, the Biden camp had secured $56 million in cash, but the Trump camp had only $30.5 million in cash.<\/p>\n
In addition, according to WP’s analysis, the number of donors was 172,000 for the Biden camp as of November last year, surpassing the 143,000 for the Trump camp. The Trump campaign suspended TV advertising for a significant period during the 2020 presidential election due to financial difficulties. However, this time, the WP diagnosed that there were further setbacks in fundraising due to the possibility that a significant portion of the campaign funds would flow to former President Trump’s legal fees in several criminal and civil trials.<\/p>\n
Some major donors have expressed concerns about donations being used to pay for legal fees, according to two prominent Republicans. \u201cThey will donate to Trump, but they won\u2019t give as much if they think the money is being wasted,\u201d said one of these Republicans, who spoke on condition of anonymity. \u201cThey want to win the election, not pay lawyers.\u201d He said.<\/p>\n
However, one Trump adviser said he had not heard such concerns directly. Former President Trump relies on ‘Leadership PAC’ ‘Save America’ and ‘MAGA Inc.’ for legal fees. Leadership Packs are permitted to raise funds to support travel, fundraising and other political expenses. Last year, the two leadership packs spent more than $55 million on former President Trump’s legal fees, or 23% of their total spending.<\/p>\n
‘Save America’ spent $2.9 million on former President Trump’s legal fees last month alone this year. Faced with having to pay huge legal fees but receiving only a small amount of donations, former President Trump is actively raising funds. WP reported that he has been \u2018talking to donors\u2019 for 3 to 5 hours a week for over a year. He also regularly writes personal letters to donors and signs thank-you notes, according to Trump’s advisers. He also reportedly agreed to a small dinner and question-and-answer session with some major donors.<\/p>\n
In fact, former President Trump held an event last week at his home in Mar-a-Lago, Florida, gathering 1,000 donors, and this week he held donation events in Nashville, Tennessee and Greenville, South Carolina, generating $10 million.<\/p>\n
Trump has signaled his willingness to continue calling even people he believes are unlikely to donate and has reportedly even asked some of his associates to raise money for him. WP reported that this is an unusual move that is different from the past.<\/p>\n
Former President Trump’s donations fall short even compared to his primary rival, former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley. Former Ambassador Haley is repeatedly losing in the primary but appears to be ahead in the competition for donations. The Financial Times (FT) reported last month that former Ambassador Haley raised $11.5 million, surpassing the amount raised by former President Trump ($8.8 million).<\/p>\n
Additionally, the FT reported that in South Carolina, where the Republican primary was held on the 24th, he spent $11.4 million on advertising, more than $10 million more than Trump. According to Politico’s analysis, 55,000 donors gave more than $200 to Haley’s campaign last month alone. Analysis suggests that the reason donations continue to continue despite former Ambassador Haley falling behind in the primary is because she is seen as an alternative to the aging President Biden or former President Trump.<\/p>\n
According to The Times, former Ambassador Haley’s supporters said that her wide range of donors shows that Haley is a candidate who can appeal to a wide spectrum of Americans and a candidate who can unite the United States after years of polarization. South Carolina residents Travis and Angela Bass, who donated $350 to Haley, said, “Are you going to vote for your grandfather? Absolutely not. There are two elderly narcissists running for president. They both have the decency to resign. \u201cIt must be equipped,\u201d he pointed out.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"