IIt wasn’t long after former President Donald Trump was convicted by a Manhattan jury on Thursday night that his allies and enemies alike seized on the verdict to try to raise much-needed campaign money.
Just moments after the former president and current Republican presidential candidate was found guilty of 34 felony counts of falsifying business records related to hush money paid to a porn star before the 2016 election, Trump’s social media platform, TruthSocial displayed sponsored posts who called the trial “rigged” and asked supporters to “contribute” to send a message to Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden. “I am a political prisoner!” Trump stated in the post, as well as in multiple emailsIncluding the one who apparently revealed a black MAGA hat to commemorate “this dark day in history.”
The Republican fundraising platform WinRed, used by Trump’s 2024 campaign and several conservative candidates and organizations, supposedly temporarily dropped an hour after the verdict.
“So many Americans were tricked into donating to President Trump’s campaign that the WinRed pages went down,” Team Trump said on X. “We are working to get the site back online as quickly as possible.”
Trump campaign spokesman Brian Hughes said in a declaration: “Within minutes of the verdict, the digital fundraising system was hit by a record number of supporters. Traffic is so heavy that it causes intermittent delays. The campaign is grateful for this massive outpouring of support because it shows that Americans considered this sham trial to be the political interference in the election that Biden and the Democrats always intended. President Trump is fighting to save our nation and all levels of support help keep up the fight. November 5th is the day when the Americans will give the true verdict!”
Republican Party Strategist Chris LaCivita said on X: “If you are one of the millions of patriotic Americans who want to donate to Donald Trump’s campaign and receive an error message from @WINRED…don’t give up! Log in again and try again! or text TRUMP to 88022 Help us send weak packaging to @JoeBiden!!!”
Republican Senator JD Vance posted in X after the verdict: “The best way to fight back against the sham trial now is to donate to the Trump campaign.”
See more information: Trump is now a criminal. What voters do with this information will write the history of this era
It wasn’t just the Trump campaign that sought to turn fury into financial gain. O National Republican Congressional Committee also sent a fundraising text that said “the Radical Left will regret this. We’ll make sure of that,” while the Iowa Republican Party sent an email encouraging donations of “$34.”
“With the verdict now, I think the groundwork will be fully cleared,” said Matthew Bartlett, a Republican strategist and former Trump administration appointee. Political. “While [Trump] was guilty of 34 counts, you can probably expect that $34 million could be coming in.”
But small dollar donations are also being supported by much larger checks written by the wealthy. Hours before Trump’s verdict was given, Silicon Valley venture capitalist Shaun Maguire said in X who had just donated $300,000 to Trump’s presidential campaign, adding that his early criminal conviction was a factor in his support: “I believe our justice system is being used as a weapon against him,” he said. Shortly after the verdict, former congressman Lee Zeldin said in X that he had just secured an $800,000 donation to Trump’s Joint Fundraising Committee, adding, “I’ve never experienced a massive request so easily.”
Much to the chagrin of the Trump campaign, however, some Republicans It seems to be mobilizing around Trump’s conviction to solicit donations only for himself. Colorado congressional candidate Dave Williams Political reported, sent a message criticizing Trump’s conviction with a button that says, “STAY WITH TRUMP AND DAVE.” But clicking the button directs you to William’s only fundraising page.
See more information: Here are the divided reactions to Trump’s guilty verdict
Democrats are also trying to profit from the conviction, clearly aware that it is unlikely to be an obstacle to Trump’s return to the White House. President Biden took to X hours after the conviction: “There is only one way to keep Donald Trump out of the Oval Office: at the polls.” Biden’s post links to ActBlue — the Democratic counterpart’s fundraising site to WinRed.
Biden campaign supposedly sent a fundraising email Thursday night with the subject line “Apropos of Nothing.” She did not explicitly mention the verdict, but said, “We think today is a great day to contribute to our campaign.”
Democratic groups also sent fundraising messages. A message from Forward Blue, a PAC, declared: “Trump is GUILTY on all 34 counts! Hurry $7 ASAP (400% MATCH) to help us DESTROY IT in November.”
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee posted in X: “After his conviction, House Republicans continue to support their convicted felon, presidential candidate.” A follow-up tweet says, “Let’s get rid of these enablers once and for all,” with a link to a fundraising page for House Democrats.
Hillary Clinton, former Secretary of State and Trump’s 2016 Democratic rival, posted on Instagram a mug showing a silhouette of her next to the words “turns out she was right about everything.”
“The project was finalized today,” Clinton said, adding that the purchases would support “groups that defend democracy” through the progressive PAC she founded, Onward Together.
Right now, Biden’s re-election campaign holds a financial advantage over Trump, with $84 million in cash on hand at the end of April, compared to the Trump campaign’s $49 million. But Trump’s campaign began to gain momentum, raising more in April than Biden did for the first time this cycle and intends to repeat this feat in May.
This story originally appeared on Time.com read the full story
