After emerging victorious in the 2016 presidential elections, shocking and confusing not only American citizens and policy experts, but also the world, concerns grew surrounding what a Trump presidency would look like. Given his campaign platform had revolved around incendiary insults, racially-fueled remarks, and divisive policy ideas, the perceived detriment he would bring to the country and global community was at the forefront of everyone’s minds. However, although these concerns have only grown after the first year of his presidency, many are now shifting their focus on the next most troubling thing, that of Trump being re-elected in 2020.
Fortunately, a glimmer of hope may be emerging regarding the next presidential elections, and the possibility of a failed re-election campaign. Understanding that a criminal indictment and jail sentence is currently the primary thing threatening a 2020 presidential run, Trump’s campaign has made the decision to allocate a significant amount of their contributions towards legal expenditures needed to keep him out of jail. The result is that his campaign is being drained of necessary funding, which would otherwise be spent on advertisements, paying campaign staff, and other re-election activities. According to a report from BuzzFeed News:
‘President Donald Trump’s 2020 reelection campaign has spent about $835,000 in legal fees so far this year, or about 22% of its total spending, according to the latest fundraising reports filed quarterly with the Federal Election Commission.
‘The spending comes as Trump deals with the intensifying special counsel investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election, as well as an ongoing legal battle with adult film star Stormy Daniels, whose given name is Stephanie Clifford.’
Those donating to re-electing Trump in 2020 are in reality paying his legal fees.
"Trump has paid the firm owned by troll wrangler Brad Parscale, his 2020 campaign manager, about $1.7 million just this year. That’s almost half of its expenditures."https://t.co/83idEVLXFT
— MaryInCary (@MaryHeartsCats) April 15, 2018
The Trump campaign team has needed to pay at least eight separate firms for their consulting services, with a strong majority of the spending being paid to law firm Jones Day, which has been representing Trump’s campaign since the election in 2016.
It's FEC filing day. New records show about 20% of Trump 2020 campaign's first quarter 2018 spending was on legal consulting.
— Michelle Ye Hee Lee (@myhlee) April 15, 2018
After the addition of yet another legal battle in the case of Stormy Daniels, the Trump campaign was forced to bring on two other firms, Harding LLP and Larocca, Hornik, Rosen, Greenberg & Blaha, both of which combine for another $280,000 being paid in legal fees.
In 1st quarter 2018, Trump's 2020 campaign spent $126,518 on the president's properties, including rental, lodging and catering fees, campaign finance report filed today shows.
— Michelle Ye Hee Lee (@myhlee) April 15, 2018
So far this year, President Trump’s campaign has managed to raise $10.1 million in contributions, spending $3.9 million on various expenditures, but still holds another $28.3 million in cash on hand. In addition to the volume of legal fees that have been paid, the campaign has needed to allocate more funds to a strategic firm, Parscale Strategy, which is owned and operated by Brad Parscale, Trump’s 2020 reelection campaign manager. Parscale Strategy has already received $1.7 million this year for their services.
24 hours after Trump's body man John McEntee got fired from the White House due to serious financial problems/possible criminal investigation, he was hired by Trump's 2020 presidential campaign.
And just two weeks into his new job, he'd already received $22K in salary payments. pic.twitter.com/vr1F8EyhJ7
— Susan Simpson (@TheViewFromLL2) April 15, 2018
The aforementioned payments only represent some of the major financial obligations that have been draining the president’s reelection campaign, not taking into consideration a myriad of other fees and expenditures that come with running an election campaign. Although most of Trump’s opponents may be hoping for a criminal sentence that keeps him from running again in 2020, the possibility of insufficient funding to operate a robust campaign is another plausible obstacle in Trump’s way. Without being able to distribute his propaganda and hire enough staff to push his agenda, perhaps fewer Trump voters will show up at the ballot boxes in 2020.
Featured Image by Getty Images
