Now that his criminal trial in New York has wrapped up with a guilty verdict, former President Donald Trump is plowing ahead with a packed schedule of fundraising events that will likely raise millions of dollars for his presidential campaign.
The donations started coming in within moments of the guilty verdict. Trump campaign aides said late Thursday that it was unclear exactly how much the campaign had raised that day from small-dollar donors, but it was enough that the campaign’s donation website crashed intermittently.
But while Trump’s small-dollar donors mobilize amid new Trump campaign ads labeling the former president a “political prisoner,” Trump himself is gearing up to raise big money from wealthy Republicans.
Trump is no longer required to sit in court every day, as he has been for much of the past two months. This change frees him up to travel to fundraisers in both Republican strongholds like Texas and deep blue states like California.
Longtime venture capitalists David Sacks and Chamath Palihapitiya are scheduled to host a fundraiser for the former president on June 6 in San Francisco, according to an invite reviewed by CNBC. Tickets for the event start at $50,000 per person and go up to $300,000. Couples can get in for $500,000.
Trump is also likely to be hosted in the ritzy Long Island enclave of the Hamptons after the Republican Party’s mid-July nominating convention, according to a person familiar with the planning.
The Hamptons soiree will feature at least six co-hosts, but the campaign has yet to determine the exact date or who will host, this person said.
Trump’s sentencing in the criminal case has been scheduled for July 11 in New York City.
The former president has also said privately that he wants to hold a fundraiser and a rally at Madison Square Garden in Manhattan this summer, ideally in July, according to people familiar with the matter.
Trump’s team and its allies have been discussing the extensive security that would be needed to ensure his safety in a public venue that seats around 19,000 people, one of the people explained.
Some people in this story were granted anonymity in order to discuss fluid scheduling decisions and logistics.
The potential July event at Madison Square Garden could bump up against the Republican National Convention set to take place in Milwaukee, July 15-19.
If Trump were to sell out tickets to Madison Square Garden, the event could easily raise millions of dollars for his cash-strapped campaign. Trump has been using donor funds to pay the massive legal bills to multiple firms defending him in four criminal cases.
An MSG spokesperson said in a one line statement to CNBC that they “do not have any events scheduled with the Trump organization at this time.”
A source familiar with the deliberations said Trump’s team and MSG officials have been in touch about a future event at the arena, but declined to provide further details.
An MSG event for Trump would also represent a counterpunch to President Joe Biden’s marquee fundraiser in March at Radio City Music Hall that featured two former presidents of Barack Obama and Bill Clinton. The gathering raised more than $25 million and sold-out the over 5,000 seat venue. Tickets for the Biden event started at $250 and went up to $500,000, according to NBC News.
The Republican National Convention will have the support of Jacob Helberg, a senior advisor to Palantir CEO Alex Karp. Helberg was a major donor to the Democratic Party.
Helberg told CNBC he plans to host a two-hour summit on July 17 in Milwaukee during the convention that focuses on technology and the defense industry.
The confirmed guests to the summit include Palmer Luckey, the founder of defense technology company Anduril Industries, as well as Sens. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., Bill Hagerty, R-Tenn. and Rep. Jim Banks, R-Ohio, Helberg said.
Banks, a veteran Trump ally, told CNBC that Helberg is bridging the gap between Silicon Valley, Washington, D.C., and the defense industry. “I hope he’ll play a big role in President Trump’s second term and I look forward to seeing him in Milwaukee,” Banks said.
Press representatives for Anduril, Tuberville and Hagerty did not return requests for comment. A spokeswoman for the Republican National Committee did not return a request for comment.
Helberg recently told The Washington Post that he gave $1 million in support of Trump after years of backing Democrats. He donated at least $700,000, for instance, to the Biden Victory Fund in 2020, according to Federal Election Commission records.
Asked whether what happens in Trump’s trial sways his support for the former president, Helberg said, “My biggest concerns are what are the make or break issues for America.”
He pointed to concerns he has with undocumented immigrants entering the United States, the need to be competitive with China and the war between Israel and Hamas.