Billionaire ex-Disney exec Ike Perlmutter becomes one of Trump’s richest donors

Former Disney executive Ike Perlmutter has indicated his intention to financially support Donald Trump in the GOP presidential primaries, making him one of the wealthiest donors behind the former president this time around.

A spokesperson for Perlmutter, whose net worth is estimated at $3.9 billion, has said this CNBC that the businessman is planning a “meaningful” contribution to Trump’s presidential campaign.

The billionaire has not yet decided how much to donate, and his spokesperson was unable to immediately provide more details when DailyMail.com reached him on Thursday night.

Perlmutter is Disney’s largest single shareholder and had been in charge of the company’s Marvel Entertainment unit until he was unceremoniously fired in April after repeatedly clashing with Disney CEO Bob Iger.

It comes as another blow to the presidential campaign of Ron DeSantis, who previously supported Perlmutter with $250,000 to support his successful 2018 run and 2022 re-election as Florida governor.

It comes as another blow to Ron DeSantis’ presidential campaign, who previously supported Perlmutter with $250,000 in state-level campaigns in Florida.

His wife also gave $2 million to the same state-level PAC that supported DeSantis for governor, the records show.

However, Perlmutter has close and longstanding ties to Trump and donated $10.5 million to a pro-Trump super PAC during the 2020 election, with his wife making an identical contribution to the same PAC.

Perlmutter also met with Trump at the White House in 2017 and reportedly acted as an outside adviser to the administration on issues related to the Department of Veterans Affairs.

But DeSantis may have been hoping for financial backing from Perlmutter, who had expressed support for the governor’s culture war with Disney over the company’s opposition to Florida’s so-called “Don’t Say Gay” law.

Perlmutter told the Wall Street Journal that he called DeSantis to tell him “you’re right” after he was fired in April.

This spring, Perlmutter dined with Vivek Ramaswamy, another GOP presidential candidate, according to the New York Times.

His considerable wealth makes him one of the wealthiest donors in a GOP primary in which many mega-donors have chosen to sit on the sidelines.

Isaac “Ike” Perlmutter meets with Donald Trum at Mar-a-Lago on December 28, 2016. He has longstanding ties to Trump and supported his past campaigns

Republican benefactor Miriam Adelson, the widow of former Trump mega-donor Sheldon Adelson, has no plans to get involved in the party’s 2024 primary, according to Politico.

Reports are mounting that major donors are increasingly concerned about the campaign of DeSantis, who is the biggest challenger to current front-runner Trump.

ABC news reported Thursday that former DeSantis supporter Ken Griffin has “hit the pause button” on his support, citing a person familiar with Griffin’s thinking.

However, Griffin’s spokesperson rejected the claim, telling DailyMail.com, “Ken is not interrupting anything. He continues to judge the field.’

Prior to his firing, the 80-year-old Perlmutter had a long feud with Disney CEO Iger, repeatedly supporting activist investor Nelson Peltz’s failed bid to join the company’s board of directors as part of a campaign to reduce costs.

He was the CEO of Marvel Entertainment prior to Disney’s acquisition of the franchise in 2009, and helped broker the acquisition, reportedly receiving $800 million in cash and a massive award of Disney stock.

Perlmutter oversaw the early Marvel Cinematic Universe until Iger sidelined him in a 2015 shuffle, with Marvel Studios head Kevin Feige beginning reporting directly to the chairman of Walt Disney Studios.

Prior to his firing, the 80-year-old Perlmutter (above) had a long feud with Disney CEO Iger and repeatedly supported activist investor Nelson Peltz’s failed bid to join the company’s board of directors

Disney CEO Bob Iger (above) announced massive restructuring and cost cutting after falling out with major Disney stockholders Nelson Peltz and Isaac Perlmutter

After the shuffle, Perlmutter oversaw Marvel Entertainment, a small consumer products division primarily engaged in licensing deals and operated separately from the giant Marvel Studios.

Marvel Entertainment was folded into Disney’s larger business units when Perlmutter was fired in April, part of a cost-cutting campaign he himself had pushed for.

Perlmutter has a long reputation as a penny pincher and had used his clout over the years to try to sharply curb corporate spending.

“Anyone who knows me is well aware of my fixation on fiscal discipline to improve efficiency,” Perlmutter said in a statement following his impeachment.

He added that as a major shareholder, he would continue to advocate for actions that secure Disney’s long-term financial health and enable a new generation of management to reverse the trend of declining equity and return dividends to previous levels. level.