Newly released filings reveal that two political action committees (PACs) associated with former President Donald Trump have collectively spent close to $29 million on legal fees in the latter half of 2023, highlighting the escalating financial burden of Trump’s increasing legal woes.
The front-runner for the GOP’s presidential nomination has been sharing these expenses with his political contributors. Federal Election Commission records indicate that Save America PAC and Make America Great Again PAC have together drained more than $50 million of donor funds on legal costs last year.
This expenditure has significantly reduced the reserves of Save America, Trump’s previously well-funded leadership PAC. Over 70% of Save America’s expenditure in the last six months of 2023 was directed towards legal costs, leaving it with a balance of approximately $5.1 million at the end of the year.
When CNN reached out for a comment on the spending, a Trump campaign aide did not immediately respond on Wednesday evening. The New York Times was the first to report that the Trump PACs’ legal spending was projected to total around $50 million for the year.
Trump is currently facing four separate criminal indictments, in addition to high-profile civil litigation. Last week, a federal civil jury awarded former magazine columnist E. Jean Carroll $83.3 million in a defamation trial against Trump. Simultaneously, a New York state judge is set to determine the amount Trump and his co-defendants owe for fraud, having previously ruled that the former president engaged in fraudulent activities in his real estate and branding empire.
New York Attorney General Letitia James, a Democrat, has brought a civil lawsuit seeking $370 million from Trump and his co-defendants. Despite his bid to return to the White House, Trump has consistently redirected 10% of the funds his campaign collects from political donors through a joint fundraising committee into Save America, the primary vehicle he has used to fund his legal bills.