For anyone wondering why President Trump filed for re-election so quickly after his inauguration (two years sooner than any previous President), holding campaign events, and generally raising campaign cash already, there may be a reason. According to Reuters, Trump “is using money donated to his reelection campaign and the Republican National Committee to pay for his lawyers in the probe of alleged Russian interference in the U.S. election.”
While it’s not against Federal Election Commission rules for private campaign funds to be used for legal bills, “Trump would be the first U.S. president in the modern campaign finance era to use such funds to cover the costs of responding to a criminal probe,” according to election law experts.
The amounts paid will soon be made public as both the RNC and the campaign have to disclose finances. Though, Reuters asked Trump’s lead attorney, John Dowd, how Trump’s legal fees were being paid, and he responded, “That’s none of your business.”
A spokesperson for the RNC said that the committee had used its legal defense fund to pay some non-Russia related expenses but did not elaborate. Reuters hasn’t been able to determine exactly how much Trump had spent on his Russia defense so far but notes that Trump has salaried White House counsel Ty Cobb working on the case along with a slew outside attorneys, after several shakeups among the President’s legal representation.
The most recent FEC filings showed that Donald J. Trump for President Inc had raised more than $4 million since Inauguration Day. The filings also showed that the campaign had made a payment to the attorney representing Donald Trump Jr.
Previous Presidents who have dealt with criminal investigations have used legal defense funds started by supporters. After the Whitewater investigation, President Clinton was millions of dollars in debt, which he paid off with post-term speaking fees.
(Via Reuters)