Donald Trump Begins Raising Campaign Funds: Vegas Casino Tycoon Pledges $100 Million Or More
Donald Trump, competing with the extreme fundraising efforts of Hillary Clinton, has decided he must ask for campaign contributions. Sheldon G. Adelson, the CEO of the Las Vegas Sands, volunteered a sizable donation. Adelson is offering $100 million or perhaps more.
Considering, Hillary Clinton’s ample war chest of contributions, the Donald estimates he may need up to a billion dollars to seriously compete with her. Clinton is not only relying on traditional Democrat donors but is also appealing to conservative Republican sources who do not want to support Trump. Common Dreams reports many conservative donors feel Hillary better represents their interest than Donald does.
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Donald Trump’s tough populist talk has alienated many mainstream Republican donors. Why would they donate to someone who plans to be tough on them, tax them, and meddle in their business practices? Still Donald stands by his principles.
Donald Trump plans to be more selective in choosing donors to approach. It is unlikely that he would ask the Koch brothers for a donation and even more unlikely that they would donate to his campaign considering Trump’s stand on the issues.
Sheldon Adelson and his wife, Miriam, are perfect donors for Donald. Sheldon is 82-years-old, among the wealthiest men in the world, and his only real agenda is that America continues to protect Israel. Adelson asked if the GOP nominee’s platform included a provision for the security of Israel. Donald expressed his continued commitment to protecting Israel, and that was enough for the couple to pledge their millions to Trump’s cause, according to the New York Times.
Donald Trump can save his integrity by accepting donations from people like the Adelsons instead of bankers, pharmaceutical companies, and job exporting corporations. In this way, he can maintain his stand on the issues without any flip flopping. He will not be obligated to Wall Street and can continue to be tough on destructive business practices.
Hillary Clinton, by contrast, is adjusting her own platform, according to the New York Times. Not only is she accepting funds from Republican mega-donors, she is reaching out to Republican voters who don’t like Trump. After her impassioned appeal to southern blacks that won her the south in the primaries, she now plans to abandon that tactic and make her appeal to middle-class and working-class Republican whites. So far, however, she has been met with mistrust, protests, and accusations of pandering.
Donald Trump is sticking to his usual stance. He cannot afford to appear purchasable, nor can he afford to pay for his own campaign anymore. He isn’t changing his views or altering his stand on the issues. He is looking for like-minded donors and people who will donate money without strings. Initially, the billionaire had planned to fund his own campaign entirely but now knows that even he can’t afford to go past the primaries using only his own money. It would take all he has and then perhaps more.
Hillary Clinton is the sole remaining defender of the political status quo and the only insider left in the race. Fundraising is one of the few benefits of this stand. Traditional corporate donors are coming under attack from both Sanders and Trump. Most mega-donors are understandably put off by the exciting new candidates who rage against the machine most political donors are a part of.
Donald Trump has promised to make America Great Again. In order to do that, he must bring Wall Street’s profiteering to heel. That pretty much precludes taking donations from them, but Hillary Clinton is certainly mopping up the excess, according to Common Dreams.
Donald Trump needs donations, but he hopes to get them without compromising his political stance.
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