Trump PAC Spent More Than $40 Million on Legal Fees
Scores of people tied to the former president have faced legal costs because of investigations Former President Donald Trump has raised tens of millions of dollars, much of it in small donations, from supporters as he casts himself as a victim of political persecution. Photo: Jeff Swensen/Getty Images By Alex Leary Updated July 30, 2023 3:58 pm ET Donald Trump’s political committee has spent more than $40 million this year on legal fees as he and a constellation of advisers have been swept into various investigations, people familiar with the situation said. The spending highlights the legal peril facing the former president, who is bracing for a third indictment as early as this week over his attempts to undo the 2020 election results. Trump remains the GOP front-run
Former President Donald Trump has raised tens of millions of dollars, much of it in small donations, from supporters as he casts himself as a victim of political persecution.
Photo: Jeff Swensen/Getty Images
Donald Trump’s political committee has spent more than $40 million this year on legal fees as he and a constellation of advisers have been swept into various investigations, people familiar with the situation said.
The spending highlights the legal peril facing the former president, who is bracing for a third indictment as early as this week over his attempts to undo the 2020 election results. Trump remains the GOP front-runner in the 2024 presidential nominating contest. He has vowed to stay in the race even if convicted.
Trump’s Save America PAC is expected to file a Federal Election Commission report on Monday showing about $40.2 million in legal fees, the people said. The amount was first reported by The Washington Post.
Scores of people affiliated with Trump have faced legal costs because of the investigations he has faced since leaving the White House. The former president has been indicted in New York in a hush-money case; he has been indicted in the case involving classified documents stored at his Florida estate; and he is expected to face charges over the 2020 election, both in Washington and in Georgia.
“The weaponized Department of Justice has continued to go after innocent Americans because they worked for President Trump,” Trump spokesman Steven Cheung said. To protect them from financial ruin, the leadership PAC contributed to their legal fees to ensure they have representation against unlawful harassment, he said.
Trump has raised tens of millions of dollars, much of it in small donations, from supporters as he casts himself as a victim of political persecution. Critics, including some Republican presidential candidates, say he has exploited those people with false claims.
“He’s making regular Americans pay his legal fees. It’s outrageous,” former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie said Sunday on CNN. “This is not the kind of person we want as our nominee because, by the way, Joe Biden will be the president again if Donald Trump is the nominee.”
The campaign of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis also called attention to the spending on Sunday, noting the $40 million exceeds the $36 million Trump’s campaign has raised since becoming a candidate late last year.
—Anthony DeBarros and Jack Gillum contributed to this article.
Write to Alex Leary at [email protected]
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