OpenSecrets Donor Newsletter: Trump dramatically outraised President Biden in May

 

June 28, 2024

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This election season is heating up, and with that comes an increase in financial disclosures to analyze and more issues to report on for our staff. We are able to manage this busy season thanks to generous donors like you who help sustain our work. On behalf of OpenSecrets, we sincerely appreciate your support. I hope you find this edition of the newsletter to be interesting and worthwhile. Warm regards, Hilary Braseth Executive Director     OpenSecrets panel on defense industry influence explores barriers to transparency and reforms On June 25, experts in U.S. military spending discussed problems around transparency and accountability when it comes to U.S. arms trade. The virtual panel was moderated by OpenSecrets Senior Researcher Dan Auble, who leads an OpenSecrets project aimed at illuminating the defense industry’s political influence. Read more.

Lobbying on AI reaches new heights in 2024 As public concerns about artificial intelligence governance have increased, lobbying on AI issues has skyrocketed in 2024.  Read more.

Chart of the Week Dive deeper into the data behind the headlines What to Know Former President Donald Trump dramatically outraised President Joe Biden in May, propelled by a flood of donations following his conviction in his criminal trial in New York. The bulk of the former president’s May intake came from contributions within 24 hours of his conviction.   Trump’s fundraising surge helped the former president edge out the cash advantage that Biden enjoyed throughout much of the 2024 election cycle, a notable shift ahead of the first 2024 presidential debate in an increasingly tight race as the campaigns head into the critical final months of the election.   By the Numbers Trump outraised Biden for the first time in April with the former president’s campaign raking in $76 million to  Biden's $51 million. May saw an even larger disparity, with Trump bringing in $141 million compared to Biden’s $85 million.    Trump and the Republican National Committee ended May with $171 million in cash on hand, a larger cash reserve than the $157 million held by Biden and the Democratic National Committee, though Trump's ongoing legal fees continue to pose a substantial financial burden to the former president.   In addition to campaign fundraising, wealthy donors are also contributing heavily to super PACs boosting both candidates.   Dig Deeper Trump and Biden’s campaigns each announced raising millions of dollars around the first 2024 presidential debate on Thursday. The Trump campaign said it raised $8 million on debate night while the Biden campaign claims it raised $14 million on debate day and the morning after, calling it their “best day for grassroots fundraising.” But some major Democratic donors have expressed concern about Biden’s debate performance, raising questions about his fundraising going forward.   Official numbers for the month of June will not be disclosed to the Federal Election Commission until campaign finance filings are due in July. Read more.

OpenSecrets in the News See our media citations from outlets around the nation this week:   Abortion rights interests plow money into US election races (Reuters) In the 2023-2024 election cycle leading up to the Nov. 5 vote, pro-abortion rights interests have given $3.37 million to federal candidates, political parties, political action committees (PACs) and outside groups, compared to about $273,000 from anti-abortion interests, according to data from OpenSecrets, which tracks money in politics.   Expensive New York primary race between Jamaal Bowman and George Latimer marks schism in Democratic Party (ABC News) Latimer, a pro-Israel candidate, was recruited to run by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), according to The New York Times. Since reportedly encouraging Latimer to run, AIPAC has been his most powerful supporter -- the organization's United Democracy Project PAC alone makes up for 60% of ad spending in the race, according to AdImpact -- which, as of Monday, clocks in at an eye-popping $23 million total, according to filings compiled by OpenSecrets.   A potential Trump VP pick backs a controversial CO2 pipeline favored by the Biden White House (Associated Press) North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum is one of Donald Trump’s most visible and vocal backers, and is considered a serious contender to be Trump’s vice-presidential choice. Burgum is championing a $5.5 billion pipeline project, which would gather planet-warming CO2 from ethanol plants across the Midwest and deposit the gas a mile underground. The pipeline aligns with Biden’s push to tackle global climate change, a position that could put him at odds with Trump who has already received nearly $8 million from Oil and gas interests, according to OpenSecrets. Trump’s dark money gets darker: How campaign finance loopholes help his criminal cases (Salon)   Why Jamaal Bowman’s New York primary is huge for pro-Israel groups (Washington Post)   Drag PAC formed by famous queens to fight anti-LGBTQ legislation (RawStory)   A timeline of Elon Musk's political stances and donations before his latest embrace of the Republican Party (Business Insider)   A look at the massive donations to campaigns and super PACs this election season (PBS News) See more here.

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Jack Smith Gets NEW EVIDENCE about Trump Crimes

 

Michael Popok of Legal AF reports on breaking new reporting that Jack Smith’s investigators have subpoenaed an interviewed a second “election fraud” consulting firm hired by  Trump that reported to him definitively that “every claim of voter fraud” trump had them look at was “false” as the DOJ builds its mail fraud case against Trump  and his false “Big Lie” fundraising.