Former US President Donald Trump’s team is in the process of establishing a legal defence fund to manage the whopping legal expenses stemming from a series of federal investigations and criminal indictments against him, multiple reports in the US media said on Monday.
Trump’s legal woes and a potential Patriot Legal Defense Fund
The fund is likely to be named the Patriot Legal Defense Fund Inc., New York Times reported.
It will be reportedly overseen by two individuals namely, Michael Glassner, a longstanding political adviser to Trump, and Lynne Patton, another former Trump aide who worked in both the Trump Organisation and his administration.
Trump’s legal defence fund: What will it cover?
The absolute extent of coverage for the legal defence fund remains uncertain. But it is being reported that it is not intended to cover Trump’s personal legal bills, as his political action committee (PAC), Save America, has been responsible for those costs.
How much is Trump’s legal defence cost?
It reportedly amounted to over $40 million in legal fees for him and several witnesses during the first half of 2023. The fee is expected to further mount in the coming months.
Also watch | Trump remains defiant over legal woes
According to Steven Cheung, a spokesperson for Trump cited in the US media, the US Justice Department has allegedly targeted innocent individuals linked to the former president, and the legal defence fund aims to support these individuals against what they perceive as unlawful harassment.
Trump’s ‘Save America’ in focus
One of the investigations focuses on Trump’s Political Action Committee, Save America. It has drawn the attention of special counsel Jack Smith, who has convened at least two grand juries to look into Trump, his allies, and advisors.
Smith’s team has raised questions about payments to certain lawyers representing witnesses and whether Trump’s aides and Republicans knew about his electoral defeat but continued to raise funds based on purported claims of voter fraud.
Save America was created to hold more than $100 million raised by Trump shortly after the November 2020 presidential election, with a purported claim that he needed his supporters’ help to combat alleged widespread voter fraud.
Trump’s legal defence fund: What does it mean?
The creation of the legal defence fund could eliminate some financial burden on Save America, as it previously sought a refund of the $60 million it had transferred to a pro-Trump super PAC late the previous year, New York Times reported.
In a recent fund-raiser for a group assisting those connected to the January 6 riot and their families, Trump expressed his intention to contribute.
Trump has not shown enthusiasm in past to establish such a fund in the past. He has often asserted that only guilty individuals require legal defence funds.
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