Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump\u2019s campaign said a major fundraiser in Florida on Saturday raked in a massive $50.5 million as the former president seeks to replenish diminished coffers in his rematch against Democrat Joe Biden.
\nThe event, his biggest fundraiser yet, is a much-needed boost for Trump, who has been routinely outraised by Biden and is in the midst of a financial squeeze due to ballooning lawyer fees and legal payouts from his criminal and civil court cases.
\nThe dinner, hosted at billionaire hedge fund manager John Paulson\u2019s Palm Beach home, will allocate a portion of the money to be raised to a fundraising group that has spent tens of millions of dollars on Trump\u2019s legal fees.
\nWhile Trump has struggled to get some major traditional Republican donors on board, he retains the support of some heavy hitters. Co-hosts on Saturday, for example, include hedge-fund investor Robert Mercer and his daughter and conservative activist Rebekah, investor Scott Bessent, and casino mogul Phil Ruffin, according to the fundraiser invitation seen by Reuters.
\n\u201cPeople are just wanting change. Rich people want it, poor people want it,\u201d said Trump in comments ahead of the fundraiser, flanked by his wife Melania Trump, who has largely stayed away from the campaign trail so far.
\nBiden spokesperson Ammar Moussa said on social media site X that billionaires had flocked to Trump\u2019s event due to tax preferences. \u201cThe ultra-wealthy are really mad at Joe Biden for making them pay their fair share,\u201d he posted.
\nPaulson has been floated by Trump as a potential Treasury secretary, according to two sources. Bessent has also been floated for the role, one of those sources said.
\nIn a statement on Saturday, Paulson said the \u201coverwhelming support\u201d at the dinner, which 100 guests were expected to attend, was a sign of enthusiasm for Trump.
\nTrump spoke for roughly 45 minutes, touching on the economy and the southern border with Mexico, fundraiser George Glass, Trump\u2019s former ambassador to Portugal, told Reuters. \u201cHe also talked a lot about the unification of the party.\u201d
\nThe Republican candidate\u2019s camp stressed the haul was double what Biden raised last month in an over $25 million star-studded fundraiser with Democratic former presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama.
\nThe numbers will not be confirmed until filings are submitted to the Federal Election Commission. Campaigns sometimes exaggerate fundraising hauls to drive momentum.
\nTrump\u2019s campaign said last month that it would be unable to match Biden\u2019s fundraising totals this year. His campaign, together with a joint fundraising committee, pulled in $20.3 million in February, compared with the more than $53 million raised by Biden\u2019s re-election effort that month.
\nFor Trump, \u201cit will be important to figure out ways to continue this fundraising momentum with a combination of large\/small dollar events,\u201d said Republican strategist Ron Bonjean.
\nFINE PRINT
\nMore money is not always an indication of success, however. Trump beat Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton in 2016 after she raised $769.9 million, far more than the $433.4 million he raised.
\nTrump, who clinched the Republican presidential nomination last month, can now raise money with the Republican National Committee (RNC), which his daughter-in-law co-chairs, ahead of the Nov. 5 election.
\nThe Trump 47 Committee, a new fundraising tie-up with the RNC, directs funds to Trump\u2019s Save America leadership group before anything goes to the RNC, the invitation shows.
\nThe Trump 47 Committee is asking top donors to contribute up to $814,600 per person. The first $6,600 of any person\u2019s contribution would go to Trump\u2019s presidential campaign, according to the invitation.
\nA maximum of $5,000 per person would then be allocated to Save America. After Save America gets its share, the RNC would get a cut of up to $413,000. In the cases of the biggest contributions, a raft of Republican state parties would get funds too.
\n(Reuters)fundraiser. fundraiser, Donald Trump, financial squeeze<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Donald Trump’s campaign raised .5 million at a Florida fundraiser, the largest of his campaign. The money will help cover his legal fees and previous payouts. Trump has the support of wealthy donors like Robert Mercer and Phil Ruffin. The fundraiser also raised money for Trump’s legal fees. Biden’s spokesperson suggested that billionaires support Trump due to tax preferences. The funds raised will be allocated to various groups, including Trump’s Save America leadership group. Trump’s campaign emphasized the importance of continuing fundraising momentum.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":7227,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"Default","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[1521,4703,2552,492,3492,4461,1221,3348,932,260,166,4704,26,1600,3343,2515,2544,5350,3586,2817,4085,2110,283,756,2446,2952,961,2628,1020,1012,5328,610,4843,1267,2342,1022,4462,2714,817,1827,1358,1065,618,973,841,5415,4928,18],"class_list":["post-7226","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-other","tag-1521","tag-activist","tag-beach","tag-biden","tag-bill","tag-billionaires","tag-campaign","tag-change","tag-court","tag-dollar","tag-donald-trump","tag-donors","tag-economy","tag-election","tag-events","tag-february","tag-fees","tag-financial-squeeze","tag-former-presidents","tag-fundraiser","tag-fundraising","tag-funds","tag-guests","tag-joe-biden","tag-match","tag-media","tag-mexico","tag-money","tag-nomination","tag-numbers","tag-party","tag-portugal","tag-president","tag-presidents","tag-re-election","tag-republican","tag-republican-donors","tag-republican-presidential-candidate","tag-social-media","tag-statement","tag-support","tag-tax","tag-top","tag-treasury","tag-trump","tag-us-presidential-elections","tag-wealthy","tag-world"],"acf":{"keyphrase":"","keywords":"","sourceimg":"","country-category":""},"yoast_head":"\n