Half a dozen of Trump's top appointees were direct or indirect donors to his election
Donald Trump and his allies spent the bulk of the presidential campaign criticizing the "donor class," but at least six of Trump's top appointees so far have been direct or indirect contributors to his campaign, Adam Smith of the nonprofit political advocacy group Every Voice pointed out on Twitter:
Andrew Puzder, who was selected by Trump as labor secretary Thursday, "gave $10,000 to pro-Trump super PAC Rebuilding America Now in August," CNBC reports. "He also donated $75,000 to a Trump joint fundraising committee with the Republican Party and gave the maximum $2,700 to Trump's campaign in May." Steven Mnuchin, Trump's treasury secretary, is also a donor, having given $2,700 to Trump's presidential campaign. Trump's secretary of commerce, Wilbur Ross Jr., is described as a "donor and longtime associate of Trump's," by NPR. Additionally, Ross "helped [Trump] resurrect his casino company after it went bankrupt in the early 1990s." And the Chicago Tribune reports that Todd Ricketts' family spent "$1 million to back Trump's presidential bid." Ricketts was recently tapped for deputy commerce secretary.
Betsy DeVos, who is Trump's pick for education secretary, is described by The New Yorker in such a way: "It would be hard to find a better representative of the 'donor class' than DeVos, whose family has been allied with Charles and David Koch for years." Finally, Linda McMahon, whom Trump named Wednesday as the head of the Small Business Administration, donated $6 million to Trump's super PAC, Rebuilding America Now, in August and September, The Washington Post reports.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.
-
Judges block $25B Kroger-Albertsons merger
Speed Read The proposed merger between the supermarket giants was stalled when judges overseeing two separate cases blocked the deal
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Rupert Murdoch loses 'Succession' court battle
Speed Read Murdoch wanted to give full control of his empire to son Lachlan, ensuring Fox News' right-wing editorial slant
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Bitcoin surges above $100k in post-election rally
Speed Read Investors are betting that the incoming Trump administration will embrace crypto
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Enron mystery: 'sick joke' or serious revival?
Speed Read 23 years after its bankruptcy filing, the Texas energy firm has announced its resurrection
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
US charges Indian tycoon with bribery, fraud
Speed Read Indian billionaire Gautam Adani has been indicted by US prosecutors for his role in a $265 million scheme to secure solar energy deals
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Boeing machinists approve contract, end strike
Speed Read The company's largest union approved the new contract offer, ending a seven-week strike
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
US economy still strong in final preelection report
Speed Read It grew at a solid 2.8% annual rate from July through September
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Boeing machinists reject deal, continue strike
Speed Read The rejection came the same day Boeing reported a $6.2 billion quarterly loss
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published