Shocking Numbers Reveal GOP’s Big Secret: Trump Is Bankrupting The Republican Party

Last updated on July 17th, 2023 at 09:06 pm

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An analysis of RNC fundraising data has revealed that beyond losing, Donald Trump’s drain of a campaign is literally bankrupting the Republican Party.

According to Open Secrets, RNC contributions are at their lowest point since before 2004:

Virtually every category of receipts shows a decline this year. Contributions from individuals where the amount given is less than $200 (the “unitemized” category) is less than half what it was in July of 2004, 2008 and 2012. There is a similar decline in direct contributions of larger amounts where specific information about the donor is included in the report. These itemized contributions total much less than July 2004 and 2008 and are even smaller than July 2012 when joint fundraising became much more important.

These joint fundraising efforts where the presidential campaign works together with the national party and state parties around the country are increasingly important, and the RNC total from those efforts also lags in July compared with 2012 and 2008. The Trump campaign has talked about huge joint fundraising successes, but neither the campaign nor the RNC has received all that much from this process so far comparatively.

People often look at cash balances and the end of the month to get a feel for how a committee is positioned for future spending. Here too, the RNC on July 31 was strikingly short of its own status on the same date in past campaigns. At a time when $70 to $90 million is the norm, the RNC finds itself with only $34.5 million in the bank.

The Trump campaign bragged about their uptick in fundraising, but a deeper look inside the numbers shows that the RNC only has $15 million in usable cash. That is $15 million for every race, data operation, voter registration, and get out the vote effort in the country. Donald Trump’s refusal to build a campaign operation in all 50 states has resulted in the RNC having to spend their resources. Trump doesn’t have a data operation, so the RNC is using party resources for that too.

Donald Trump is bleeding the Republican Party dry. It is no surprise that a man who has built his career on bankruptcy and debt is mooching off of the Republican Party. What is shocking is how quickly Trump has pushed the RNC towards insolvency.

The money that the RNC isn’t raising because of Trump matters because that means that there will be less money to go around for other candidates. Republicans could lose close House and Senate elections because RNC Chair Reince Priebus threw precious party resources down the Trump sink hole.

Don’t believe the Trump created hype. Trump may play a billionaire on reality television, but as a presidential nominee, he is a deadbeat eating all of the RNC’s food while crashing on their couch.

Jason Easley

Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.

Awards and  Professional Memberships

Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association