Trump property (one of many) supported by GOP
An interesting
yet very troublesome story from The
Hill and should be of major to everyone (minus the Trump loyalists that is):
Background leading to
the story that follows:
In 2017, Sen.
Steve Daines (R-MT) campaign dropped $281 at Trump’s hotel in Las Vegas.
The following year, the Iowa Republican
Party paid $945 for rooms at a Trump resort in Miami. Four months later, “Protect
the House,” which funnels money
to House Republicans, spent $154,500 to rent out part of the Trump hotel in
Washington.
In total, nearly 200 campaigns and
political groups — virtually all conservative — have spent more than $8 million
at President Donald Trump’s resorts and other businesses since his election in
2016.
_______________________________________________________
But, that wasn’t the
case before Trump got into politics. For example:
Between 2012 and 2014, campaigns and political groups
spent a combined $69,000 at Trump businesses.
But since June 2015, when Trump announced he was
running for the White House, political spending at the president’s properties
has topped $19 million. Some of the initial surge was related to the Trump
campaign’s using a Trump company plane during the 2016 election, but much of
the uptick comes from conservative candidates and groups.
More from Politico reporting: The Trump Organization has become a haven for
Republican groups hosting political events and fundraisers, an informal
arrangement that directly financially benefits the president.
The amount
reported by Politico represented a sharp increase in revenue from political
sources for the Trump Organization, which received just under $70,000 in total
from such groups in the two years leading up to his campaign announcement.
As noted above, since
that announcement in June of 2015, the amount has ballooned to $19 million,
with $8 million having been spent at Trump resorts and properties since Trump
won the 2016 election. The highest level was in 2016, when nearly $12 million
in total political spending occurred at Trump businesses that year.
Democrats
and critics of the administration have long argued that the president's
financial arrangements, namely his decision to not sell his businesses before
taking office, violate the constitution's Emoluments Clause prohibiting gifts
to members of the federal government.
Rep.
Jamie Raskin (D-MD) of the House Oversight Committee told Politico: “President Trump has perfected the financial
shakedown of seeking political influence as a way of life. This is now standard
operating procedure in Washington. It's pay-to-play all day.”
My 2 cents: I note, naturally from the4 article
that “a White House spokesperson
responded to Politico's report with a statement saying that Trump has no
involvement in the day-to-day operations of his old company.”
What a crock yet typical GOP and White House BS statement
and stance and that is to protect Trump at all costs and folks, it costs
plenty. As far as Trump goes he asks where is the nearest bus to toss someone
under and act like Sgt. Schultz in “Hogan’s Heroes” …
Thanks for stopping by.
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