Trump is charging $100,000 for a Photo-Op at Mar-a-Lago as part of Republican midterm campaign fundraiser
Courtesy: nbcnews
Former President Donald Trump is reportedly charging $100,000 for attendees of an upcoming Mar-a-Lago fundraiser to take a photo with him, with tickets for a private dinner costing $250,000.
An invitation to the event, shared on Twitter by New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman, shows that at the Take-Back Congress Candidate Forum on Feb. 23 at the private Palm Beach, Florida, the club starts at $5,000.
The cost of being photographed alongside the former president or having a meet-and-greet with him at his club rises (where he is also routinely spotted by passersby who then share his comings and goings on social media).
The profits from the event will benefit Make America Great Again, Again! campaign. Trump’s agenda is supported by a super political action committee.
Those who pay at least $25,000 for a ticket will hear remarks from the 75-year-old Trump and have the opportunity to take a photo with the Republican candidates he has endorsed for the upcoming Congressional midterm elections.
The event will also be attended by PAC chair Pam Bondi, the former attorney general of Florida, and Kimberly Guilfoyle, Donald Trump Jr.‘s fiancée and the national finance chair of another Trump PAC, America First Action.
Trump has continued to raise millions of dollars since leaving office, despite not confirming his plans for a presidential run in 2024. He has also continued to lie about the 2020 election results, which he lost to Joe Biden, and has alternately praised and sharply criticized GOP politicians who have supported him.
The former president’s PACs demonstrate his continued popularity among conservatives: His groups have amassed $122 million since leaving the White House in 2021 — though Trump hasn’t exactly distributed the wealth. According to ABC News, only $1.35 million of that total has gone to candidates Trump has endorsed.
Despite being impeached twice by the House of Representatives while in office, being effectively banned from his own social media accounts due to his behavior during the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riots, and facing a number of investigations into his business dealings, the former president remains popular with the Republican base. (He strongly denies any wrongdoing.)
Since leaving office, Trump has backed a slew of candidates in gubernatorial, Senate, and House races across the country. He’s also openly flirted with the idea of running again, though he’s stated that it’s still too early to make an official announcement.
He told a Conservative Political Action Conference audience in 2021 that his “incredible journey” was “far from over.”
While visiting first responders in New York on Sept. 11, 2021, he also indicated that he had made a decision and gave the impression that he will run. “For me, it’s an easy question … I know what I’m going to do,” he said, adding, “I think you’re going to be happy, let me put it that way. I think you’re going to be very happy.”
President Biden, for his part, has said he is okay with a redo: “Why would I not run against Donald Trump if he’s the nominee?” Biden told ABC News in December. “That would increase the prospect of running.”
Trump has spent much of his post-White House life at Mar-a-Lago, where he is widely popular and seen as something of a kingmaker, frequently meeting with Republican candidates to determine whether or not he will support their campaigns.
According to a source, Trump and his wife, Melania Trump, who just celebrated their 17th wedding anniversary, are “very happy to be in Palm Beach.”
“Donald plays golf regularly with political guys who fly down as well as with social friends from his club, and Melania keeps busy with her family, the spa at Mar-a-Lago, and her own business and philanthropic interests,” the source said.
As one source told PEOPLE in January: “[The former first lady] knows what Donald wants from her, but the rest of her life is dictated by her own interests. Each has come to respect what the other wants and needs.”
