ORLANDO, Fla. ― Former President Donald Trump has launched a new website for his political “leadership” committee that will allow him to convert his appearance at the Conservative Political Action Conference on Sunday into money into his own pocket.
Trump created “Save America” days after losing last November’s election to Democrat Joe Biden, and collected some $76 million for it over two months before the Republican National Committee stopped raising money with him the day of the deadly assault on the U.S. Capitol that Trump incited.
The group previously did not have a public presence, relying instead on the RNC’s fundraising operation, with 75% of each small-dollar donation raised going to Trump and 25% going to the party. Because leadership PACs are so loosely regulated, Trump can use that money for pretty much any purpose, including picking up his personal expenses or even paying him an eight-figure salary.
Now, the 40 million or so names on his list of supporters ― who include several million proven donors ― can give him money directly through www.saveamerica45.com, which immediately redirects to an old campaign web address, www.donaldjtrump.com.
“NEW SITE COMING SOON,” the site read on Saturday afternoon. “See me this weekend live at CPAC on Sunday!”
There were no linked pages as of this story’s filing, but the “DONATE” button went to Save America’s page at the WinRed fundraising site, which was created by Republicans in 2019 to counter the liberal ActBlue.
Trump’s office did not respond to queries about the new fundraising operation, but details are contained in new filings Saturday with the Federal Election Commission. One Republican close to Trump said he has not actively started soliciting for Save America yet with emails or texts.
Those FEC documents also describe a related “Make America Great Again PAC” that is involved in a joint fundraising agreement with Save America, although that relationship is not clear.
That group is organized as a super PAC, which would allow it to accept donations of unlimited size, although money could not be used to benefit Trump personally. Donations to Save America, in contrast, are limited to $5,000 per person per year, with virtually no restrictions on how it can be spent ― except that it cannot be used for a Trump 2024 campaign.
Trump is the first one-term president in modern times to nevertheless try to remain a force in national politics after losing reelection. He was able to raise tens of millions of dollars for Save America in the weeks between the Nov. 3 election and Jan. 6 insurrection by claiming, in hundreds of fundraising texts and emails, that the money would let him pursue challenges to the election results and help Republicans hold two Georgia Senate seats. In the end, though, he spent none of that money for either purpose.
The WinRed fundraising page claims Trump’s committee “is vital to supporting Republicans across the Nation and stopping the Radical Left.” However, since leaving office on Jan. 20, Trump has primarily attacked Republicans who voted to convict him at his impeachment trial for inciting the Jan. 6 mob and who have otherwise criticized him.