Trump’s lawyers sent letters to a group of Republican committees asking them to stop using Trump in fundraising appeals, including the National Republican Senatorial Committee and the National Republican Congressional Committee. Other groups loosely affiliated with the party also received warnings.
An NRCC spokesman declined to comment on how the organization planned to respond to the cease and desist letters. An NRSC spokesman did not respond to a request for comment.
The dispute represents a rare break between the Trump team and the RNC, which during the 2020 campaign worked together through a fundraiser to raise more than $ 366 million. The two sides merged their political and digital operations into a single operation in the run for last year’s election, and their fundraising activities were closely aligned. Trump and McDaniel speak frequently, and shortly after the election, he endorsed her for a third term as president of the party – a nod that paved the way for her re-election.
But as he outlines his plans to take revenge on his supposed Republican enemies in the mid-term elections of 2022, the former president has begun to exercise greater control over how his name is used to generate dollars for fundraising. A few days before the cease and desist letters were sent, Trump delivered a speech before the Conservative Political Action Conference in which he said the “only … way” to financially support Trump-aligned Republicans was through Save America , its political action of leadership committee.
Trump launched the PAC shortly after the 2020 elections, a period during which he raised tens of millions of dollars. Trump can use the committee to donate to candidates of his choice and to fund other political activities.
Separately, he hired longtime consultant Corey Lewandowski to lead a super PAC, which will be able to raise and spend unlimited amounts of money. Brad Parscale re-entered Trump’s orbit after being fired as a campaign manager last summer and is helping with digital fundraising efforts.
Some high-ranking Republicans say they believe last week’s demand to cease and desist was driven by advisers around Trump, not by the former president himself. And most scoffed at the request, saying they are allowed to use Trump’s name in fundraising appeals, since he is a public figure.
The RNC has continued to invoke Trump on several fundraising calls since it was asked to cease and desist. He sent a couple of Trump-themed fundraising emails over the weekend and on Monday sent an email to donors asking them to help “defend President Trump’s legacy.”
In her letter, Riemer writes that Trump and McDaniel “have a close relationship, and we understand that President Trump reaffirmed to her over the weekend that he approves the current use of his name by the RNC in fundraising and other materials, including for our next donor retreat event in Palm Beach, in which we expect your participation ”.
A Trump spokesman did not respond to a request for comment.
Trump has always been sensitive about people who make money from his name. In 2019, the Trump campaign rebuked David Bossie, a former informal adviser to the former president, amid allegations that he deceptively used Trump’s name to raise money for an outside group he was overseeing.
While the RNC and Trump campaigns worked closely during last year’s campaign, there were sometimes tensions between the two sides. McDaniel and former Trump campaign manager Bill Stepien have long been seen as rivals, and during the final days of the election, communication between the committee and the campaign was cut short. Although the campaign was skeptical of the data provided by the RNC, committee officials criticized the TV ads that the reelection effort was running.