Even though the presidential election is now less than a year away, political action committees aligned with disgraced former president Donald Trump have already spent some $50 million to cover his mounting legal expenses, with even more bad legal news on the horizon for him.
Maggie Haberman and Shane Goldmacher of the New York Times report the “staggering” $50 million expenditure begs a comparison: “Nikki Haley raised roughly the same amount of money across all her committees in the last year.”
Using Federal Election Commission filings, Haberman and Goldmacher explain that Trump will face an “enormous financial strain” as he attempts to win a second term in the White House, especially since he’s already facing anti-Trump headwinds shown recently in polls that reveal even many registered Republicans saying they won’t vote for him.
The $50 million has been paid out by the following PACs: Make America Great, Save America, and MAGA Inc. according to the report.
The failed ex-president is also confronted with a cash crunch in his personal finances thanks to a massive $83.3 million defamation judgement handed down against him by a New York jury last week for his comments regarding writer E. Jean Carroll, who says she was sexually assaulted by Trump.
Another New York case could also hit Trump in the pocket.
A civil fraud case brought by New York Attorney General Letitia James will reach a conclusion in the weeks ahead when Judge Arthur Engoron decides how much the Trump Organization should have to pay for decades of bank and tax fraud. Some experts say the judgement could reach as high as $350 million and also lead to the company being banned from ever doing business in the Empire State.
