Trump Spent Legal Defense Fund Money at Mar-a-Lago

Photo: Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Last summer, as the number of investigations and criminal cases against Donald Trump rapidly expanded, his team created a political nonprofit called the “Patriot Legal Defense Fund.” The purpose was not to cover the former president’s legal bills; those are being handled by Trump’s Save America PAC, which “has paid nearly $37 million to more than 60 law firms and individual attorneys since January 2022,” according to the Associated Press. Instead, money raised by the Patriot Legal Defense Fund would help Trump employees and associates who have been dragged into his various legal quagmires.

Trump spokesman Steven Cheung told the New York Times in July that the Justice Department had “targeted innocent Americans associated with President Trump,” and so “to combat these heinous actions” and “protect these innocent people from financial ruin and prevent their lives from being completely destroyed, a new legal defense fund will help pay for their legal fees to ensure they have representation against unlawful harassment.”

So, nearly five months later, how is this effort going? Great … if you like partying at Mar-a-Lago. But not so hot if you’re Rudy Giuliani, Jenna Ellis, or another former Trump associate drowning in legal fees.

The Daily Beast reported on Tuesday that new tax filings show the legal defense fund has taken in about $1.6 million since its creation in July. The majority of that money came via one contribution: $1 million from a trust owned by passionate QAnon believers Caryn and Michael Borland, whose 2020 Trump campaign fundraiser was canceled over their support for the conspiracy theory.

To date, the Patriot Legal Defense Fund has shelled out less than $30,000. And notably, that money was mainly spent at Mar-a-Lago, per the Daily Beast:

In fact, the Patriot Legal Defense Fund spent just $28,578 over the last six months, with Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club getting $18,136 for “banquet hall” fees in late November. The second biggest payout went to Trump political adviser Michael Glassner, who runs the fund and received $2,500 for “consulting,” paid through his public affairs firm C&M Transcontinental.

It’s not clear what specific event incurred those fees at Mar-a-Lago; the form just says $18,136 went toward “banquet venue” on November 27.

Trump has used Save America funds to cover the legal fees of certain witnesses and co-defendants, like his former White House Diet Coke valet Walt Nauta. But other Trump associates have complained that they’re being left out in the cold — most notably Rudy Giuliani, who is facing financial ruin thanks to various legal troubles, including a defamation trial that could see him fined tens of millions of dollars. While Trump did host a fundraiser for Giuliani in September — after he begged for help — it seems Trump would rather let $1.5 million sit in a legal defense fund unused than help out his former attorney.