Trump’s fundraising swing through the Hamptons on Friday is creating headaches for some of his high-dollar donors.
A who’s-who of investment and real estate executives have been invited, sources tell @justinsink @ekrembert and me. https://t.co/i9e9hMNj8X
— Jennifer Jacobs (@JenniferJJacobs) August 8, 2019
Trump donors lament brief brushes with consequences. https://t.co/qheMnrcWSJ
— The Hoarse Whisperer (@HoarseWisperer) August 9, 2019
… Calling out the people who fund campaigns is not a new tactic in politics, but the question of how much should be publicly disclosed about those donors has been an issue that Republicans, led by the Senate majority leader, Mitch McConnell, have repeatedly raised in recent years. While the Supreme Court ruled in the 2010 Citizens United case to uphold public disclosure — with Justice Antonin Scalia, the court’s conservative stalwart, arguing later that without such revelations “democracy is doomed” — Republicans and wealthy allies like the Koch brothers have argued that it results in donor harassment and has a chilling effect on free speech…
But the Supreme Court’s support for campaign finance disclosure laws has a built-in exemption for people who can show a realistic threat of harassment, and the renewed scrutiny on Trump donors has also raised questions about what qualifies as donor harassment and who is entitled to privacy…
“Transparency is essential, Mrs. Clinton, unless it means that our favorite plutocrats might get snubbed in the Hamptons. That’s just inhumane!… ”
NEW from @jonathanvswan: Billionaire Stephen Ross privately expressed qualms about going ahead with his Hamptons fundraiser for Trump today after liberal customers threatened to boycott Equinox and SoulCycle. https://t.co/p1ixBVZeQz
— Axios (@axios) August 9, 2019