Posted on 09/19/2017 2:10:19 PM PDT by Oshkalaboomboom
President Trump is spending cash donated to his reelection campaign and the Republican National Committee to pay for his lawyers in the criminal probe of Russian interference in the election, a new report said Tuesday.
The Federal Election Commission allows the use of private campaign funds to pay legal bills arising from being a candidate or elected official.
But while previous presidential campaigns have used these funds to pay for routine legal matters such as ballot access disputes and compliance requirements, Trump would be the first president in the modern campaign finance era to use such funds to cover the costs of defending himself in a criminal probe, said election law experts.
A source familiar with the matter told Reuters, which first reported the story, the first payments, the amount of which was not available, had already been made and would be disclosed in public filings.
The source did not explain how much came from the campaign and the how much came from the RNC.
The committee is expected to make its August spending public on Wednesday, and the Trump campaign is due for another disclosure on Oct. 15.
John Dowd, Trump’s lead lawyer, declined to say how the president’s legal bills were being paid.
“That’s none of your business,” he snapped.
A spokesperson for the RNC declined to comment, but said the committee has already paid unspecified, non-Russia related litigation expenses for the campaign.
The committee has an existing legal defense fund which has been used mainly for Election Day recounts and other routine legal matters for candidates, the spokesperson said.
Special counsel Robert Mueller is looking at possible collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia in last year’s election, and whether Trump may have obstructed justice by firing FBI Director James Comey. Trump denies any collusion or obstruction.
(Excerpt) Read more at nypost.com ...
“President Trump is spending cash donated to his reelection campaign and the Republican National Committee to pay for his lawyers in the criminal probe of Russian interference in the election, a new report said Tuesday.”
This makes sense to use political money for his defense since political funds are being used to attack him.
I call this sort of attack “Palinization”
How scandalous. Not.
Political donations belong to the candidate, to use as he chooses. That's why NeverTrump Republicans are addicted to lobbyists and liberalism. They love the contributions, which become their nest egg.
It also makes sense logically. The "charges"--or rather, false claims--are just part of the Dims' decision to continue the campaign past the election. It's appropriate that he has the funds available to oblige them.
That’s a good name for it!!!
Just think of all the little poor children who could be fed if the demoncraps weren’t forcing Trump to defend himself against the baseless charges.
This is part of the plan for President Trump and many in his staff - make them suffer financially defending themselves against unfounded accusations. This tactic is also used to discourage worthwhile candidates from serving in government. It is an old Democrat dirty trick.
So there is no issue, except liberal moonbats hyperventilating because their use of political donations to harass and delegitimize Trump and other conservatives is being counterbalanced by Trump using same funds.
I hope they all hyperventilate and turn blue. As long as they can collect spittle on the rim of their pie-holes as they spew nonsense, they aren't blue enough yet. Trump and others should do what they can to help them along.
So, lawyers paid for by the Federal government are being used to drain the coffers of Trump’s reelection campaign and the RNC. That, by itself, is enough to keep Mueller interested for at least a year; even with no results.
Bob Fredericks, the resident Trump Hater in Chief at the New York Post strikes yet again with a nothing-burger served with his usual snark.
Yes, Mueller’s cronies are being paid BIG bucks.
>> I hope they all hyperventilate and turn blue
Yes, that would be good.
Sounds fine, though the Fake News Media goal is undoubtedly to slow future contributions, despite the fact that the fault in the matter is them promoting a fake scandal.
Um, thats why we donated it to him
To help drain the swamp
D. Oh.
“West Wing aides brace for big attorney bills”
http://www.politico.com/story/2017/05/20/trump-administration-lawyers-fees-238631
“It can cost a lot of money,” said Peter Wehner, a former George W. Bush White House aide .. “Just for safety sake, even if you’ve done nothing wrong.”
Trump aides who can’t afford a premier $1,500-per-hour white-collar lawyer on their government salaries have options. They can file for public subsidies, lean on their homeowners’ insurance or tap lawyer friends for pro bono help. But even then, veterans of White House scandals stretching back to the Ronald Reagan era say that some of the staffers who get caught in Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s crosshairs will want to start pinching pennies.
..some of the staffers who get caught in Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s crosshairs will want to start pinching pennies.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
“Several Trump Associates Are Struggling To Pay Legal Bills For Russia Probe”
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/muckraker/flynn-caputo-struggle-legal-bills-russia-probe
At least two former associates of President Donald Trump’s campaign are struggling to pay hefty legal bills stemming from the congressional and federal probes into Russia’s interference in the U.S. election.
Former campaign aide Michael Caputo was using his children’s college funds to cover his own legal bills. [Caputo left the Trump campaign in June 2016.]
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
“Michael Flynn Prepping for a $1 Million Legal Tab”
http://www.thedailybeast.com/michael-flynn-prepping-for-a-dollar1-million-legal-tab
people facing questions from Mueller’s team can expect exponentially higher bills
Caputo said he’s spent $30,000.. “The fact of the matter is, if somebody like myself––who left the campaign in June 2016––is enduring these dramatic expenses, you can imagine what’s happening to people who stayed with the president through the campaign until today,” he said.
The financial burden was heavy. So was the psychological one.
Matt Schlapp, “You have to scan all your emails, which is a frightening experience because it hits you how many you send in the course of a day,” he recalled. “You don’t sleep very well. You worry about hurting your friends…. It is generally a very stressful situation.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
“As Team Trump Lawyers Up, Who’s Paying The Attorney Fees?”
http://www.npr.org/2017/07/19/537985015/as-team-trump-lawyers-up-whos-paying-the-attorney-fees
This kind of legal representation doesn’t come cheap.
The costs of hiring a lawyer could loom over the next set of potential clients: White House staffers who get caught in an investigation or merely touched by one. They are not represented by the White House counsel’s office.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Good. He is being accused while in office, so Republican funds should pay for fees.
Trump’s donors will be cheering him on.
It’s legal.
Blame the democrats - it is their bogus charges that make this necessary.
I seriously doubt that.
Oh yeah. That would be mine.
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