Fueling the Funds

The Federal Election Commissions Q2 filings hit the books this past Sunday. President Trump’s 2020 fundraising efforts are in full swing. This marks another departure from presidential norms. Typically, incumbent presidents wait until after the midterms to start raising money for their next election cycle.

The unorthodoxy here seems to have grossed President Trump an enormous amount of money. Looking at Trump’s three most profitable organizations from January 2017—before he took office—till now, he has made over $80 million. These committees have managed to spend close to $8.5 million in this quarter alone, with a substantial amount going to legal fees associated with the Russia investigation, online fundraising, and payments to the Trump Organization.