Trump Reelection Campaign Drawing New, Big Dollar Donors
[guest post by Dana]
The Washington Post published a report informing readers that during the impeachment season, Trump is attracting both new donors and donors who have never given money to a campaign, as well as voters who sat out the last election:
Dan Costa, who runs four apparel companies in Northern California, was never a major political donor. But last year, he made a large contribution to the GOP for the first time: $37,500 in hopes of four more years of President Trump.
“That’s a big investment for anybody,” said Costa, whose only other contribution to a presidential candidate was $1,000 to Mitt Romney in 2012. “It’s like insurance that is going to help save the country. . . . It’s for me and my grandkids and the next generations.”
[…]
Their ranks include investors in a South Florida hot yoga studio, a Nigerian American real estate developer in Dallas and the head of a trucking business in Los Angeles. They have been joined by veteran GOP donors who have returned to the fold after sitting out Trump’s 2016 campaign.
[…]
Trump is now also supported by a more traditional source of party money: longtime GOP donors who shunned him during his 2016 campaign. By and large, those wealthy establishment donors have fallen in line behind Trump’s reelection, said Lisa Spies, a longtime Republican fundraiser.
The report goes on to note that the new wave of contributors are giving anything but chump change:
Trump’s vaunted political money machine is helping drive record sums to the Republican National Committee, and not just from the same donors who supported him in 2016. Enticed by exclusive gatherings and ecstatic about the president’s tax cuts, an eclectic new crop of donors is going all in, giving five and six figures to support his reelection.
The Washington Post identified at least 220 big donors to Trump’s reelection who are either new to major political giving or sat out the last presidential general election. Together, they have deluged pro-Trump fundraising committees with more than $21 million — a cash infusion that suggests a newfound enthusiasm for the president among supporters capable of writing large checks.
Motivating donors is the healthy economy, Trump’s tax cuts and efforts at deregulation.
Note: Since Trump’s election, more than 1.6 million new donors have contributed to the Republican Party, in both large and small amounts, party officials said.
Though doubtful that it was intentional, the report reveals the diversity of Trump’s big donors, including Nigerian-Americans, Hispanics, and Chinese-Americans.
While there are those opining that Trump’s reelection looks like a long-shot, one has to wonder if a Trump loss really will be a slam-dunk, given his considerable war chest of more than $100 million headed into the 2020 election year:
And if you think this election will favor Trump, ask yourself this question: When was the last time his approval rating was above 45 percent and his disapproval was below 45 percent? Answer: not since his inauguration. Simply put, this fact does not bode well for this incumbent — no matter how strong the economy or his campaign’s success in turning out his voters. Trump is not a majority president. It’s unlikely he can be a majority candidate.
Interestngly, the NRSC reported today that the impeachment hearing has “fired up Trump’s base” and become and is a “net negative for Democrats in key states”:
NRSC surveys conducted in January in battleground states, including Arizona, Colorado, Maine, and North Carolina, show that 62% of voters agree that Congress should be focusing on top issues like health care costs, trade deals, and keeping the economy on track instead of trying to remove Donald Trump from office. This includes 63% of independents and 61% of women.
Furthermore, 58% agree that Democrats should let voters decide for themselves in next November’s elections instead of trying to impeach Trump and remove him from office, including 59% of independents and 55% of women.
In Maine, which has given the collective media a nosebleed as they attempt to put Susan Collins in a box, 59% of voters agree Congress should focus on top issues instead of impeachment and 55% agree that we should let voters decide in November.
Perhaps most telling, a whopping 62% of independents in Maine say that we should focus on other issues instead of impeachment, and 58% of independents think we should let the voters decide at the ballot box in November.
And these numbers aren’t unique to Maine. We’ve seen similar numbers in Colorado, North Carolina, Arizona, and other battleground states. Across the board, voters recognize this for what it is: a partisan sideshow. 68% say that impeachment “is all about politics” and that “Democrats should be more concerned about addressing issues of the day like the cost of health care, fair trade deals and keeping the economy on track.”
However, here’s what recent Fox News polling found:
A Fox News poll released Sunday found that voters think the Senate already has enough evidence to render its verdict — 48 percent to 44 percent who say senators should subpoena witnesses. But by a margin of 6 percentage points, they think the evidence points to guilt and removal from office…Two polls last week found that 51 percent of Americans want the Senate to convict and oust Trump, whose approval rating in the Fox News poll is 45 percent, 54 percent disapproval…the party with a Senate majority is taking his side — 84 percent of Republicans told the Fox News pollsters that Trump shouldn’t be convicted and removed, versus 81 percent of Democrats who said he should be; independents wanted Trump removed by a 19-point margin, 53 percent to 34 percent.
Meanwhile, Trump seems to be feeling pretty confident today:
GAME OVER! pic.twitter.com/yvMa6bPqfy
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 29, 2020
(Cross-posted at The Jury Talks Back.)
–Dana
Hello.
Dana (aaddb1) — 1/29/2020 @ 3:53 pmJoe Biden (Text Join to 30330)
@JoeBiden
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. To speak to the middle class, we need to reject the super PAC system. That’s exactly what this campaign is doing.
Apr 28, 2019
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Bo Erickson CBS
harkin (d6cfee) — 1/29/2020 @ 4:13 pm@BoKnowsNews
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The Pro-@JoeBiden super PAC just pumped in $962,340.00 more allocated for Iowa ad buys.
Jan 29, 2020
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I would caution those who thinks Trump was a fantastical chance of re-election.
Trump wasn’t supposed to win in 2016. Hillary had a much larger warchest, so Trump’s current warchest shouldn’t be taken as a given that things are looking good for him.
As Han Solo said to Luke: Don’t get cocky kid!
Also, his chance is really dependent on who’s the Democratic candidate will be.
If I were a betting man, I’d pay close attention to PA, WI and MI. If Trump is looking good there, within the parameters of 2016, then Trump has a great chance.
whembly (c30c83) — 1/29/2020 @ 5:38 pm3. Believe it or not, I think he has an excellent chance of winning in 2020. Given the circumstances he rose above in 2016, I have no reason to believe he can’t do it again in 2020. That’s my realistic, pragmatic side talking.
Gryph (08c844) — 1/29/2020 @ 5:40 pmImagine donating money to a billionaire.
Davethulhu (fe4242) — 1/29/2020 @ 5:43 pmI don’t think the election can be predicted this cycle. Anything could happen and whatever it is will be a surprise.
Nic (896fdf) — 1/29/2020 @ 5:56 pmJoe Biden (Text Join to 30330)
@JoeBiden
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again.
Plagiarizing himself?! A new low, Joe!
DCSCA (797bc0) — 1/29/2020 @ 6:01 pmconsiderable war chest of more than $100 million headed into the 2020 election year
Obama’s was bigger, and I mean that as a compliment to Obama. More people, rich and poor, liked Obama better than Trump, as proven by the respective sizes of the crowds at their inaugurations.
nk (1d9030) — 1/29/2020 @ 6:04 pm5. Imagine donating money to a billionaire.
Beat me to it… simply cannot get over that pattern of idiocy.
“You get what you pay for.” – John Arbuckle
DCSCA (797bc0) — 1/29/2020 @ 6:04 pmOnly way to become billionaire is with other people’s money, comrades. Is simple truth, not hard to understand.
nk (1d9030) — 1/29/2020 @ 6:08 pmImpeachment is not looked upon favorably by 2:1 in fabled MIPAWI and its southern counterpart AZGANC- though I wonder if it is more for the fact that a removal from office dampens the business of campaign travel to and through these states.
urbanleftbehind (2641dd) — 1/29/2020 @ 6:13 pmThey might want to bypass the candidate and buy a better implement:
urbanleftbehind (2641dd) — 1/29/2020 @ 6:14 pmhttp://ktla.com/2020/01/29/new-section-of-border-wall-topples-amid-high-winds-in-calexico-area/
@12. LOL It has been gusty; but that is hilarious. My birdfeeder held up just fine; the outdoor table umbrella– not so much.
DCSCA (797bc0) — 1/29/2020 @ 6:17 pmMeanwhile, Trump seems to be feeling pretty confident today: GAME OVER! pic.twitter.com/yvMa6bPqfy
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 29, 2020
50 bells rung… but ‘All is well’ too. 😉
DCSCA (797bc0) — 1/29/2020 @ 6:26 pmGryph @ 4,
I agree with you. And in spite of the current circumstances he faces, he is still bringing in the money and support. Further, his base is solidified now and rallying around the “witch hunt” they believe to be currently taking place. And the reason I think he will win too is because of this:
Gawain’s Ghost made the comment on another thread, and I think it’s an accurate description of what has happened and why Trump will likely win.
Dana (aaddb1) — 1/29/2020 @ 7:15 pmTrump has not lost his political base as Nixon did. If his support was in the mid 20’s he’d be a goner. It isn’t and it doesn’t seem like it will be — his support is as high as it’s ever been.
Kevin M (19357e) — 1/29/2020 @ 8:26 pmthe things the Republicans all claimed they stood for
Bush 2 and any number of R congressmen should have disabused everyone of that notion.
frosty (f27e97) — 1/29/2020 @ 9:08 pm16. Nixon may have lost his political base, but Reagan and George H.W. Bush maintained their support throughout and didn’t suffer politically for it.
Gryph (08c844) — 1/29/2020 @ 10:12 pm@18. Iran-Contra punctured the Reagan mystique, G, and GHWB was at 90%+ popularity, post Gulf War– yet lost support and the election to Bubba as Reaganomics collapsed.
DCSCA (797bc0) — 1/29/2020 @ 11:24 pmPresident Obama, in the run up to the 2012 election, made a comment about an aggrieved class of people who felt abandoned by their government and who had decided to “cling to their guns and religion.” I thought at the time that this was a perceptive observation, and I wondered why no effort was made by the Democratic party to reach out to these people. That remains the case today.
John B Boddie (286277) — 1/30/2020 @ 10:32 am