At first Donald Trump wanted money to come thru him….
THAT has NOT happened….
But the Grand ole Party and others are now using Trump’s name to generate money….
A Republican official noted that the RNC’s efforts to send emails from people not named Donald Trump have been successful overall. But sources close to the RNC say the party also recognizes the power the former president has when it comes to bringing in small dollar donors, and that it has no plans to distance themselves from him as the former president and de facto leader of the party.
“The party raises money in different ways,” said one top Republican fundraiser. “When you’re talking about different email, Facebook, small donors, building up that loyalty at the small-dollar level, President Trump is so much more potent and powerful than all the other names of the party combined — including Abraham Lincoln and Ronald Reagan.”
The fundraiser went on to argue that the major GOP donor class was still skeptical of Trump. But others say that, too, is becoming less clear. Another top Republican fundraiser, who declined to speak on the record, said angst over Biden’s early tenure had persuaded some of the party’s money men to rethink Trump.
“Those donors who were wary of Trump have been coming up saying they’re not happy with current leadership,” said the Florida-based fundraiser. “He feels reenergized by that and the enthusiasm he’s getting. Could have gone either way.”
For a very brief period of time, it wasn’t clear that the relationship between the party’s institutions and Trump would survive. At the end of February, Trump called on conservatives to financially back his leadership political action committee, Save America, instead of the GOP entities. Days later, he sent a “cease and desist” letter to the RNC demanding that they not use his “name, image, and/or likeness in all fundraising, persuasion, and/or issue speech.”
Even without his usual social media platforms to give him a fundraising boost like Twitter or Facebook, Trump continues to rake in money for his leadership PAC. A Trump adviser said Save America PAC currently has over $90 million. But his rift with the RNC was quickly resolved after party officials worked to smooth things over — and for the most part disregarded Trump’s demands. Trump remains in regular contact with McDaniel.
“The Republican Party has a long history of incorporating former presidents in our fundraising efforts, and we are happy to tout President Trump’s accomplishments and all he did to fight for the American people,” said RNC spokesperson Emma Vaughn.
Since then, the committee has been active and creative in trying to fundraise off the Trump brand….