'It’s not right': Trump wants money from former aides he says are making a 'killing' off his name
A new report alleges that former President Donald Trump is enraged at several former aides who raised tens of millions of dollars to start a far-right think tank, and wants his aides to violate federal law to give him what he feels is his proper cut.
Several unnamed sources close to Trump confided to Rolling Stone that the ex-president said "it's not right" that the America First Policy Institute (AFPI) hasn't given Trump a share of the nearly $38 million it raised between 2021 and 2022. One source told the outlet that Trump believes AFPI board members like former National Economic Council director Larry Kudlow, former Small Business Association administrator Linda McMahon, former Energy Secretary Rick Perry and former White House domestic policy aide Brooke Rollins are making a "killing" off his name.
"It's my f---ing money," Trump reportedly said in October, according to Rolling Stone's source.
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However, simply handing Trump millions of dollars would be a blatant violation of federal law governing nonprofit organizations like AFPI. As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, AFPI is prohibited from making any donations in support of a political campaign. And because Trump is running for president in 2024, any payment from AFPI to Trump could be viewed by the IRS as a political donation. Additionally, IRS rules state that 501(c)(3) nonprofits must operate in the public interest and not for the private benefit or profit of a single individual.
Rolling Stone's sources said the former president "has been consistently, gently told" that the money raised for AFPI is money raised for a nonprofit and not available for use by the group's leadership. However, Trump reportedly countered that MAGA groups like AFPI should give him a cut of any money made off of his "brand," arguing that his name is the only reason those organizations are able to raise so much money.
According to Rolling Stone, the former president believes AFPI's money is held in an account controlled by "Brooke [Rollins]" and that he would be willing to settle for "just half" of the nonprofit's revenue. The outlet's sources said Trump expected Rollins to transfer half of the group's money to him, saying "she can keep" the rest.
In response to the allegations, AFPI chief communications director Marc Lotter emailed the outlet, calling the sources' claims "typical FAKE NEWS... easily disproven with the simple fact in the past three years President Trump has headlined a half dozen events for AFPI, including our Hispanic leadership conference in Miami, his first return trip to Washington, D.C., the Big Tech lawsuit, and three fundraising events at Mar-a-Lago, as recently as last month."
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Click here to read Rolling Stone's full report (subscription required).
