Scoop: Trump's shadowy, big-money fan clubs
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About a dozen political groups, using unlimited and undisclosed donations, are running ads with twin goals: Boosting — and flattering — President Trump.
Why it matters: The groups — separate from Trump's official political operation — have combined to spend more than $20 million since his election. Their spending is expected to escalate dramatically in the coming months.
- The TV and digital ads are being run in Washington, D.C., where they can be seen by lawmakers.
- Some also are being aired in the Palm Beach, Fla., area, so they can catch Trump himself when he's at his Mar-a-Lago club — a sign that some of the groups are looking to curry favor with the TV-obsessed president.
- One such ad campaign is by a group called the Vapor Technology Association, which is running a flight of commercials in South Florida in which self-described vaping enthusiasts talk about how they turned out for Trump in the election.
Zoom in: These "dark money" advocacy groups — so named because they aren't required to disclose their sources of income — are nominally independent of Trump's mammoth $500 million political operation.
- But many provide air cover for Trump and everything MAGA — either to support him or bash his enemies.
- That's why some of the pro-Trump groups are still running ads blasting former President Biden, a frequent Trump foil.
- Others have focused on running ads in the districts of House Republicans, with an eye toward pressuring them to get behind Trump.
America First Steel Alliance, one of the Trump-aligned outfits, is running spots praising his decision to impose steep tariffs on steel imports — a move that comes as Trump faces a backlash over tariffs.
- "President Trump is standing strong for American steel," the ad says.
- The group has spent more than $650,000 to air the TV commercial in Washington, D.C., Palm Beach and Pittsburgh. It also has run more than $250,000 in online advertising, according to media buying figures obtained by Axios.
So far, the biggest-spending outfit has been Seniors 4 Better Care, which has aired more than $8.7 million worth of TV commercials, plus another $2.5 million in digital ads.
- One recent spot by that group highlights Trump's efforts to find a cure for cancer — which could be seen as a counter to the negative publicity the administration is getting for laying off thousands of scientists and researchers.
- The next-biggest spender among the pro-Trump groups is Building America's Future, which has unloaded about $5 million in TV ads since Trump's election. This week, it unveiled a new commercial touting Trump's immigration policies.
Chris LaCivita and Tony Fabrizio, who were top strategists on Trump's campaign and are key players in the president's official political apparatus, are behind some of the advocacy outfits.
- They help run Make America Affordable Again, a group that this week is launching a multimillion-dollar TV ad blitz supporting Trump's plans to end "lawsuit abuse" and blaming Biden for inflation.
The newest Trump-aligned group is the Big Stick Project, which is overseen by LaCivita, Fabrizio and Republican strategist Chip Englander and is planning ads touting Trump's energy policies.
- Englander also has been a top political adviser to Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, who plays a key role in shaping the administration's energy policies.
- Unlike other organizations whose ads are aimed at D.C.-based lawmakers, the Big Stick Project will run commercials in swing states such as Michigan and Georgia, which have key midterm races next year.
