The former president’s campaign funds covered many legal expenses in January as the court battles continued.
Former President Donald Trump’s various campaign committees spent more than $3.6 million on his legal team in January, according to newly filed federal disclosures.
On the evening of Feb. 20, three of President Trump’s main fundraising bodies —Donald J. Trump For President 2024 Inc., Make America Great Again Inc., and Save America— reported to the Federal Election Commission (FEC) that they collectively spent about $3.6 million with numerous firms and agents for legal services in January.
The primary account, Trump’s qualified leadership political action committee, used about $2.7 million of its funds to pay 18 different firms and consultants for either “legal consulting” or “reimbursement for legal fees.”
Two other committees tied to President Trump—the allied super PAC MAGA INC., and his principal campaign committee— covered the remainder of the January legal expenses. Together, they paid seven different law firms.
The latest FEC filings demonstrate President Trump continues to use campaign money to cover legal expenses. President Trump often says the numerous court cases he’s facing are politically motivated.
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Save America is President Trump’s primary spender on legal fees. According to fundraising reports filed on Feb. 20, nearly the entirety of the about $5 million it brought in during January came from a single source: MAGA Inc.
Save America is a qualified leadership political action committee. That, according to the FEC, means it is “directly or indirectly established, financed, maintained or controlled by a candidate or an individual holding federal office, but is not an authorized committee of the candidate or officeholder and is not affiliated with an authorized committee of a candidate or officeholder.”
MAGA Inc. is a super-PAC. It can solicit from and make unlimited contributions to individuals, corporations, labor unions, and other political committees, according to the FEC. It is unauthorized, meaning it cannot cooperate directly with the candidate.
The $5 million sent to Save America from MAGA Inc. was classified as a “refund of federal contribution” in the federal disclosure.
The largest single benefactor of MAGA Inc. in January was Timothy Mellon. Mr. Mellon gave $5 million to MAGA Inc. on Jan. 30, according to federal records.
According to Forbes, the Mellon family is worth an estimated $14.1 billion.
The rest of the money that came into Save America, about $8,000, came from WinRed. WinRed is a hybrid political action committee that transfers money from small-dollar donors to Republican Party candidates for federal office.
WinRed is a hybrid PAC. According to the FEC, a hybrid PAC can solicit and accept unlimited contributions from individuals, corporations, labor unions, and other political committees. It must maintain two bank accounts—one for independent spending on advertisements or voter drives and another for making direct contributions to federal candidates.
Save America, according to its disclosures, ended January with about $6.3 million in cash on hand.
President Trump continues to face a full slate of court challenges as he makes another run for the White House in 2024.
For his part, President Trump, on his Truth Social account, declared the New York civil fraud ruling a “Complete and Total SHAM.”
Original News Source Link – Epoch Times
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