Former President Donald Trump demanded that the Republican National Committee (RNC) and two Republican campaign organizations stop using their name and image to raise funds on Friday, according to a Politico report.
Trump’s lawyers allegedly sent orders to cease and desist not only to the RNC, but also to the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) and the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC), which are leading Republican efforts to retake the Senate and the Chamber in the 2022 elections, respectively.
The effort to cease and desist comes less than a week after Trump’s first major post-presidential speech at the 2021 Conservative Political Action Conference, or CPAC, in Orlando, Florida.
Trump used his speech not only to reaffirm his leadership of the party that nominated him twice as president, but to launch a possible presidential candidacy in 2024 and to name the 10 Republican representatives who voted to impeach him for inciting insurrection in January.
He also attacked the seven Republican senators who voted to condemn him, telling the crowd, “Get rid of them all,” although at least two of the seven have already announced that they will not run for re-election.
Trump puts Mitt Romney, “Little Ben Sasse”, Richard Burr, Bill Cassidy, Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski, Pat Tomney and all House Republicans who voted for his impeachment in the name explosion – concluding with Liz Cheney pic.twitter.com/Me5JvoIslq
– Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) February 28, 2021
According to Rachael Bade and Tara Palmeri of Politico, these Republican defectors are part of the reason why Trump chose to issue cessation and withdrawal orders on Friday. The twice-impeached former president was “furious that his name was considered by organizations that help Republicans who voted for his impeachment – without his permission.”
Before his pivot in politics, Trump made a career negotiating under his name: he licensed everything from Trump steaks to Trump vodka and Trump ties, not to mention a series of towers in the United States and abroad, and earned millions in the process.
In February, NRCC finance president Rep. Darin LaHood told Politico that the Republican Party campaign arm would support pro-impeachment members in 2022, despite Trump’s public desire to excommunicate them from the party. And NRCC President Rep. Tom Emmer encouraged Trump to stay out of the Republican Party primaries.
Trump’s CPAC speech made it clear that he plans to intercede in the primaries – and if carried out, the cease and desist orders that Trump’s camp sent on Friday could be a blow to the Republican Party’s fundraising efforts. for the middle of the term.
In part, this is because the Republican base remains overwhelmingly loyal to Trump. For example, in a Morning Consult / Politico poll in the field at the end of last month, 79 percent of Republicans say they hold a favorable opinion of the former president, and a majority of House and Senate Republicans also voted against him.
In addition, Trump has proven himself to be a fund-raising giant since his defeat in the elections in November last year. His lead PAC, Save America, raised more than $ 31 million shortly after the election, and Trump is also considering starting a new super PAC to increase his fundraising power.
Trump is also doing his best to channel money from Republican donors through his own fundraising channels, rather than groups like the NRSC.
“There is only one way to contribute to our efforts to elect America’s first Republican conservatives and, in turn, to make America great again, through Save America PAC and donaldjtrump.com,” he told supporters at CPAC at the end. last week.
If Republican donors heed the ex-president’s call, Trump will likely be able to influence the upcoming elections not just by using his popularity to provide endorsements, but by using his PACs to rival the efforts of the RNC, NRSC and NRCC.
On Saturday, however, the RNC did not appear to have been deterred. According to Alex Isenstadt of Politico, the committee sent a fundraising email invoking Trump’s agenda, even after orders to cease and desist.
As reported by @playbookdc, Trump sent cease-and-desist letters to the RNC, NRCC and NRSC telling them not to use Trump’s name or likeness in $ appeals
But the RNC seems to be ignoring this. They sent an email today asking supporters $ to “DEFEND” Trump’s policies
– Alex Isenstadt (@politicoalex) March 6, 2021
Trump’s exact plans are unclear, but he is ensuring that the GOP continues with his party
All the money he is collecting, Trump’s future political plans are somewhat obscure. He has repeatedly triggered a 2024 run, and it is not difficult to see him winning the nomination again if his current support with the GOP base is maintained.
But Trump is also facing a unique set of post-presidential challenges that can complicate that plan – that is, a lot of potential legal problems.
At a minimum, he is facing ongoing criminal investigations by district attorneys in Manhattan and Fulton County, Georgia, and New York Attorney General Letitia James is also leading a civil investigation into possible fraud by the Trump Organization.
There is also a defamation suit by writer E. Jean Carroll, who accused Trump of sexual assault in 2019, and two lawsuits by members of Congress over Trump’s actions in connection with the January 6 invasion of the United States Capitol by pro-Trump insurgents.
What’s more, Trump is facing potentially precarious financial circumstances in the near future, with a decision of more than $ 100 million from the IRS about an impending tax refund and his struggling businesses.
In short, he may be a little busy with other things by the time of 2024 – and that’s assuming he wants to run, since he hates the real job of being president and Twitter has made it clear that he won’t have his account back for help him, even if he runs again.
For now, however, Trump’s prospective candidacy for 2024 largely froze the rest of the field of Republican candidates for 2024 and allowed him to consolidate his leadership in the party, as Bloomberg explained last month.
And whatever he decides on 2024, Trump’s plans for 2022 are clearer. In February, he issued his first primary endorsement of the Republican Party against a pro-impeachment Republican – Rep. Anthony Gonzalez of Ohio – and plans to attack other intra-party opponents, such as Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski, the only senator who voted to condemn that too is active for re-election in 2022.
“I don’t know where other people will be next year,” Trump said in a statement Saturday, “But I know where I will be – in Alaska campaigning against a disloyal and very bad senator.”