Trump bombards supporters with near-constant texts for money, analysis by The Independent finds
Texts come hours apart with no clear explanation for how the money will be spent
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Your support makes all the difference.Former President Donald Trump is out of office, and has not announced any plans to run in the future, but that hasn’t stopped his political action committee (PAC) from bombarding his fans with daily requests for money and other support.
Months of text messages reviewed by The Independent reveal that supporters of the former president received at least one text message per day throughout the month of May, with some texts coming mere hours apart ahead of fundraising deadlines.
The donation links route money to the “Trump Make America Great Again Committee,” a joint fundraising committee that splits funds between the Republican National Committee (RNC), Mr Trump’s 2020 campaign for president, as well as the Save America PAC, an organisation founded by Mr Trump to fund his future political efforts.
The frequency of the calls for donations rivals that of most active political campaigns, and suggests that Mr Trump is keen on maintaining a massive war chest throughout his post-presidency that means his endorsement (or lack thereof) carries huge financial weight in any local race.
Some texts sent to supporters via the automated service are designed to appear as if they were personally written by the former president, while others are signed by Eric Trump, Donald Trump Jr, and former first lady Melania Trump.
“Eric & Don Jr: It’s so important that we’re BOTH texting you,” reads one text sent to supporters. “It’s almost our father’s birthday. You have 1HR to sign the card. Act NOW.”
The Independent has reached out to the office of Mr Trump for comment.
Formed in November of last year just days after the former president’s defeat to President Joe Biden, the Save America PAC now has roughly $85m cash on hand, according to its most recent FEC filings. The PAC has yet to spend any money supporting or opposing any specific candidates.
Under US law, the PAC money can’t be used to directly support a potential future run for office by Mr Trump, or used to pay down debts from his 2020 campaign. It could, however, fund his travel and rallies around the country in support of other pro-Trump figures in their own campaigns, and be used generally to keep Mr Trump’s name and brand in the public eye for the next four years as he remains banned from Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
While the organisation has yet to flex its muscle against any of Mr Trump’s enemies, it did commission a poll gauging support for Rep Liz Cheney, the Wyoming Republican who publicly condemned Mr Trump for his role in the 6 January attack on the US Capitol, later that month.
Ms Cheney is seen as a top potential target for a Trump-backed primary challenger as a result of her continued criticism of the former president and his spread of election-related conspiracy theories; last month, she was ousted from her position as chair of the House Republican Conference as a result as well.
The former president spoke over the weekend before the North Carolina Republican Party, where he hinted at the possibility of a 2024 run for the White House and pledged to support the GOP in the midterms.
“The survival of America depends on our ability to elect Republicans at every level starting with the midterms next year,” he said.
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