Trump cashes in during final weeks of his presidential campaign

[Morrison71]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/09/08/trump-cash-merchandise-books-cards/

With less than 10 weeks before the presidential election, Donald Trump had a message for voters in late August: He would be selling more digital trading cards for $99 each.

On Tuesday, he again took to Truth Social for another post: selling a book — $99 without his autograph, $499 with his autograph — of pictures of himself. "A MUST HAVE on U.S. History," he called it.

In both cases, the money was not going to his campaign but to for-profit ventures he earns millions from promoting. No presidential candidate has ever so closely linked his election with personal for-profit enterprises, selling a staggering array of merchandise that includes signed Bibles where he receives a royalty for hawking them, pricey sneakers, gold necklaces, cryptocurrency cards, pens, books, licensing fees on overseas properties and more.

His company's website also sells a variety of political merchandise at higher prices than his campaign charges for the same items. A "Make America Great Again" hat that sells for $55 on his company website costs $40 through the campaign. A 3x5 flag from the campaign costs $43, while the same size flag on the company's site costs $86.
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"There's no precedent in history at all, and certainly not in modern history, for somebody who has monetized the office or running for office of president the way he has," said Don Fox, former general counsel for the U.S. Office of Government Ethics.

But Trump's various moneymaking strategies also further a narrative that Democrats say resonates with voters: that the former president only cares about himself.

"One of the many arguments we make against Trump is that he cares solely about himself and his bottom line more than anything else, including the American people, it manifests itself in all sorts of different ways," said Ammar Moussa, director of rapid response for the Harris campaign. "We have a lot of different proof points, and it's not just him hawking bibles and ugly sneakers. It's also, for instance, when he uses donor money to pay for his personal legal fees."
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A spokeswoman for Trump did not answer questions about how many deals he had struck, how much money he had made or whether he would continue such deals should he win the White House.

"President Trump left his multibillion-dollar real estate empire to run for office, donated his presidential government salary, and was the first President to actually lose net worth while serving in the White House," spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said. "Unlike most politicians, President Trump didn't get into politics for profit. He ran for president because he genuinely loves the people of this country and wants to make America great again."
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There are advisers and lawyers inside the campaign who say the deals are a little "slimy," but "Trump relishes being able to market his name," said one campaign adviser, who like some others spoke on the condition of anonymity to reveal internal details.

"His general belief is, 'If I'm going to get attacked and have to pay all these lawyers and deal with everything, I need to make some money off it,'" the adviser said.
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Douglas Brinkley, a presidential historian at Rice University, said former presidents have often made money by selling books, giving speeches or serving on boards. "They raise money for their libraries, and they get big checks for their memoirs," Brinkley said.

But he said no president or major-party presidential candidate had ever marketed themselves the way Trump has — with extensive licensing deals for gear, or merging a campaign for the presidency with a private business enterprise.

"In the sense of marketeering themselves in the way that Trump does, selling bobbleheads and MAGA gear, it's a new lurch into campaign capitalism and profiteering off the White House," he said. "It's a real blurring of the lines between his private marketeering and campaign politics. You can quickly confuse the voting public."
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Trump often caused challenges to his lawyers and aides — for example, he demanded that the pro shop in his golf course sell MAGA hats, which was campaign merchandise that his private club cannot sell. Eventually, lawyers suggested an iPad be brought into the clubhouse so that people could make a donation to his campaign to get the hats.

Trump has sold a license agreement to a company that markets a panoply of products branded in his name. Those include various styles of golf shoes, perfume, coolers, and sandals among other projects. Trump hawked the athletic shoes during a stop at a Pennsylvania sneaker event this year, because part of the deal required him to promote them.
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Some of Trump's former and informal advisers have discussed launching a Trump vodka line, according to people familiar with the discussions. So far, that has not come to market. A person close to Trump said he has no plans to endorse or start a vodka line.

On some occasions, Trump has benefited from political organizations that he controls. For example, at various political events, donors, supporters and allies are given copies of his picture book, including at the Republican National Convention in July, per attendees. The party has purchased the books.

One adviser described Trump spending hours signing the copies of the book but said he viewed it as worth the money.
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[Jerome Silberman]

Remember when he was doing product placement for Goya from the Resolute Desk?

 

[InsaneHawkJJP]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/09/08/trump-cash-merchandise-books-cards/

I’ve spent $42,069 and it was worth every penny. This is 100% Americana and will only increase in value, my kids will be set for life.

 

[cigaretteman]

https://iowa.forums.rivals.com/thre...al-weeks-of-his-presidential-campaign.451168/