With trials pushed back, Trump sees first big dip in legal bills
WASHINGTON — As a former president Donald Trump Now that he’s facing a massive Democratic fundraising campaign, it appears the one ongoing drain on campaign funds is easing: legal fees.
A new report shows that the political action committee Save America paid about $827,000 for Trump’s legal fees in June — the first time in two years that its monthly total has fallen below $1 million. The Trump-aligned PAC has spent an average of nearly $4 million a month on such fees since July 2022, much of it on defending the former president in criminal and civil cases, according to an Associated Press analysis of campaign finance data.
It’s not surprising that Save America has recorded such a decline. Trump’s weeks-long hush-money trial ended in May — with a conviction — and the former president has had a string of good fortune in two federal criminal cases that will not go to trial anytime soon, if they do. A fourth case, in Georgia, is also in limbo.
Funds once needed to finance those court battles could instead be diverted to the campaign, which has entered a critical phase. On Sunday, President Joe Biden dropped out of the race and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to take his place at the head of the Democratic ticket, effectively restarting the race. Trump has said he should be reimbursed for the money his campaign spent against Biden.
Democrats have gathered around Harriswhose campaign has since received at least $126 million in donations through Wednesday, a staggering sum that is nearly half of what Biden’s reelection bid raised in the entire second quarter. An additional $150 million has been committed to Future Forwardan outside group that supports the Democratic slate of candidates.
While the amount Save America pays for lawyers is relatively small compared to modern campaigning, every dollar counts in a competitive race, experts say.
“This is going to be a close election, and to the extent that the money for lawyers can now be spent on organizers, that’s helpful,” said Republican strategist Alex Conant.
Trump’s campaign saw a surge in donations following his May 31 sentencing. Trump’s campaign has not publicly said how much it raised following the July 13 sentencing. attempted murder at a meeting in Butler, Pennsylvania, but it is expected to be a significant amount.
The drop in legal fees comes after a New York jury found Trump guilty on 34 state charges related to concealing a hush-money payment to prevent porn star Stormy Daniels from going public about an alleged sexual encounter with the future president during the 2016 campaign. Trump has denied wrongdoing and is appealing the verdict.
The former president is also appealing nearly $500 million civil fraud case in New York that threatens to drain his personal cash reserves. A judge ruled in February that Trump and his company had schemed for years to inflate his fortune on financial statements used to secure favorable loans and close deals.
Trump has otherwise, at least temporarily, dodged legal challenges that could have complicated his ability to campaign this summer and fall. A federal judge on July 15 has dismissed a federal indictment against Trump for illegally storing secret documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida. Justice Department Special Counsel Jack Smith is appealing that decision.
And last month, the Supreme Court largely sided with Trump in granting broad immunity to presidents of prosecution, throwing a wrench into Smith’s plans to try the former president on charges he plotted to overturn the 2020 election. A fourth criminal case involving state charges in Georgia is stalled on appeal.
“He was a little bit hampered by the lawsuits when it came to doing fundraising,” said Doug Heye, a Republican strategist. “Trump couldn’t have an event in Dallas on Wednesday and Miami on Thursday. He was stuck in New York. That’s not the case now.”
Trump’s political action committee Save America has paid at least $83 million since January 2022 to more than 80 law firms and individual lawyers representing him and current and former associates. Federal Electoral Commission data shows. The spending makes up the bulk of the PAC’s expenditures, and it has become the primary channel for raising and spending money for Trump’s legal defense.
Campaign finance experts say using the money to pay lawyers in cases unrelated to the campaign or officeholders could violate a federal ban on personal use of donor money, even though the Federal Election Commission has ruled that the ban does not apply to so-called political action committees such as Save America. Trump’s campaign has argued that the lawsuits are inherently political and tied to his candidacy.
Trump’s campaign declined to answer specific questions about the legal costs, but criticized the decisions to pursue criminal and civil lawsuits as politically motivated. Trump spokesman Steven Cheung said in a statement that the campaign believes Democrats “used the legal system as a weapon against their primary political opponent during the height of the presidential campaign.”
Despite the easing of legal pressure, Trump’s lawyers still have much work to do.
Ciara Torres-Spelliscya professor at Stetson University College of Law in Florida, said Trump’s lawyers will battle with prosecutors in the New York case over whether and how the Supreme Court ruling on immunityIf the case survives these arguments, Trump’s lawyers will have to prepare for the sentencing, for which no date has yet been set.
Meanwhile, the lawyers will try to narrow the remainder of the election interference charge. The Supreme Court ruling requires U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan in Washington to to assess which allegations are no longer within the reach of Smith’s accusers. His lawyers will also challenge an appeal by Smith to overturn District Judge Aileen Cannon’s decision to dismiss the case involving the secret documents.
“Trump will still have high legal costs,” Torres-Spelliscy said, “but less than when he was in court, since trial time is most expensive for defendants.”