The anti-Trump “resistance” hasn’t been doing much resisting outside of social media.
Just consider the Republicans’ fundraising edge over the Democrats during the last year.
The Republican National Committee broke a fundraising record and raised more than $100 million during the first nine months of 2017, fueled by small-dollar donors, out-raising the DNC by a ratio of greater than 2:1. The DNC also had over $3 million in debt on the books, while the RNC had zero. The Democrats’ failed government shutdown stunt cost them one of their billionaire donors, Tom Steyer.
Republicans are outraising Democrats – and managing those funds better. One new network of progressive organizations that’s formed in the “Trump era” is called the Democratic Coalition, and they managed to bring in $500,000 last year.
Unfortunately for their donors, the coalition is making headlines for where those funds have gone.
According to the Daily Beast,
The Coalition’s donors include Omar Siddiqui (a Congressional candidate), a pair of Hollywood television producers, a former Real Housewife of Miami, and a member of the U.S. Broadcasting Board of Governors. The vast majority of its funds, however, have come from people whose names don’t make it into Federal Election Commission disclosures: the small, “unitemized” donors who give $200 or less.
Siddiqui, the Democratic challenger to Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA), was surprised to discover his money—or three of every four dollars of it—had gone to the coffers of consultants and lawyers the group leaned on to fight a libel suit, rather than pushing back against the president. Months later, when told by The Daily Beast how the group had spent his money, Siddiqui was, charitably speaking, not pleased.
Wow. That’s quite a discrepancy in funding! Sounds like a huge ripoff for donors.
What do you think? Are you surprised anti-Trump groups are using donor money for expensive consultants and not spending it? Tell us your thoughts below and share this story over Facebook now!
