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Blackstone CEO Steve Schwarzman. (Photo: Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images)
Trump's Top Ten Billionaire Enablers
Trump didn’t get here on his own. Many have enabled him, especially the billionaires who funneled money his way and then stood by as he damaged our democracy.
Jan 10, 2021
We've heard plenty about the GOP members of Congress and Trump political appointees who have "enabled" Donald Trump over these four years, failing to act to stem his excesses.
But what about the billionaire donors to Trump's campaign and his victory PACs? Especially those who gave substantial donations in 2019 and 2020, when it was clear that Trump was causing a crisis in our democracy?
Unlike those who gave to the 2016 campaign but distanced themselves from Trump after seeing him in action, will there be any accountability for these most recent billionaire enablers of Donald Trump who saw what damage he caused-but still stood by him?
These are the billionaires who already received their whopping individual and corporate tax cuts in 2017. Yet, empowered with their money, continued to contribute to Trump for four more years.
Watch for our forthcoming IPS report and reporting on "Trump's Billionaire Enablers." But here are a few initial findings:
The Institute for Policy Studies identified 63 U.S. billionaires who gave a combined $33 million to the Trump Victory Fund in the last two years. Trump Victory was a joint fundraising account for the Trump 2020 campaign and the Republican National Committee.
As of January 8th, these billionaires together have wealth of $243.7 billion dollars (using estimates from Wealth-X and Forbes).
Top Ten Billionaire Enablers. The top ten billionaire donors to the Trump Victory Fund are:
- Gas pipeline magnate Kelcy Lee Warren, worth $2.9 billion, gave eight donations totaling $2,248,906.
- Retired CEO of Marvel Entertainment, Isaac Perlmutter, is worth $5.8 billion and donated $1,871,200.
- Telecommunications mogul Kenny Troutt, worth $1.5 billion, donated $1,849,000.
- Biotech investor Robert Duggan, worth $2.6 billion, donated $1,638,200 to the Trump Victory Fund. In the final days of the campaign, Duggan gave $4.6 million to various Trump campaign groups, according to Forbes.
- Casino magnate Steve Wynn, worth $3 billion, contributed over $1,523,500.
- Another casino owner, Phillip Gene Ruffin, worth $2.3 billion, donated $1,375,000.
- Owner of ABC Supply, the giant home supplier, Diane Hendricks $8 billion (Forbes), donated $1,175,000.
- Casino megadonor Sheldon Adelson, and his wife Miriam Adelson, worth over $35.9 billion (Forbes), contributed $1.16 million, along with massive donations to other Republican PACs and candidates.
- Texas Banker Daniel Andrew Beal, worth $7.5 billion, gave $1,161,200.
- Software entrepreneur David Duffield, worth $13.3 billion, donated $1,151,600.
Other notable billionaires to the Trump Victory Fund include:
- Blackstone CEO Stephen Schwarzman, worth $20.9 billion, who gave $355,000.
- Johnson & Johnson heir Robert Wood Johnson IV, worth $2.5 billion, contributed $575,000.
- Hedge fund manager John Paulson, worth $4.2 billion, donated $831,372.
- Heir to the cosmetic fortune, Ronald Steven Lauder, worth $5.2 billion, gave $100,000.
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Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 License.
Chuck Collins
Chuck Collins is co-founder of CARP and author of Burned by Billionaires: How Concentrated Wealth and Power are Ruining Our Lives and Planet.
Omar Ocampo
Omar Ocampo is a researcher for the Program on Inequality and the Common Good. He graduated from the University ofMassachusetts Boston with a B.A. in Political Science and holds a Masters in International Relations from the American University in Cairo. His thesis focused on the politics of international oil and humanitarian intervention in Libya.
campaign financecorporate personhooddemocracyinequalityjan 6 insurrectionrepublican partytrumpismwall street
We've heard plenty about the GOP members of Congress and Trump political appointees who have "enabled" Donald Trump over these four years, failing to act to stem his excesses.
But what about the billionaire donors to Trump's campaign and his victory PACs? Especially those who gave substantial donations in 2019 and 2020, when it was clear that Trump was causing a crisis in our democracy?
Unlike those who gave to the 2016 campaign but distanced themselves from Trump after seeing him in action, will there be any accountability for these most recent billionaire enablers of Donald Trump who saw what damage he caused-but still stood by him?
These are the billionaires who already received their whopping individual and corporate tax cuts in 2017. Yet, empowered with their money, continued to contribute to Trump for four more years.
Watch for our forthcoming IPS report and reporting on "Trump's Billionaire Enablers." But here are a few initial findings:
The Institute for Policy Studies identified 63 U.S. billionaires who gave a combined $33 million to the Trump Victory Fund in the last two years. Trump Victory was a joint fundraising account for the Trump 2020 campaign and the Republican National Committee.
As of January 8th, these billionaires together have wealth of $243.7 billion dollars (using estimates from Wealth-X and Forbes).
Top Ten Billionaire Enablers. The top ten billionaire donors to the Trump Victory Fund are:
- Gas pipeline magnate Kelcy Lee Warren, worth $2.9 billion, gave eight donations totaling $2,248,906.
- Retired CEO of Marvel Entertainment, Isaac Perlmutter, is worth $5.8 billion and donated $1,871,200.
- Telecommunications mogul Kenny Troutt, worth $1.5 billion, donated $1,849,000.
- Biotech investor Robert Duggan, worth $2.6 billion, donated $1,638,200 to the Trump Victory Fund. In the final days of the campaign, Duggan gave $4.6 million to various Trump campaign groups, according to Forbes.
- Casino magnate Steve Wynn, worth $3 billion, contributed over $1,523,500.
- Another casino owner, Phillip Gene Ruffin, worth $2.3 billion, donated $1,375,000.
- Owner of ABC Supply, the giant home supplier, Diane Hendricks $8 billion (Forbes), donated $1,175,000.
- Casino megadonor Sheldon Adelson, and his wife Miriam Adelson, worth over $35.9 billion (Forbes), contributed $1.16 million, along with massive donations to other Republican PACs and candidates.
- Texas Banker Daniel Andrew Beal, worth $7.5 billion, gave $1,161,200.
- Software entrepreneur David Duffield, worth $13.3 billion, donated $1,151,600.
Other notable billionaires to the Trump Victory Fund include:
- Blackstone CEO Stephen Schwarzman, worth $20.9 billion, who gave $355,000.
- Johnson & Johnson heir Robert Wood Johnson IV, worth $2.5 billion, contributed $575,000.
- Hedge fund manager John Paulson, worth $4.2 billion, donated $831,372.
- Heir to the cosmetic fortune, Ronald Steven Lauder, worth $5.2 billion, gave $100,000.
Chuck Collins
Chuck Collins is co-founder of CARP and author of Burned by Billionaires: How Concentrated Wealth and Power are Ruining Our Lives and Planet.
Omar Ocampo
Omar Ocampo is a researcher for the Program on Inequality and the Common Good. He graduated from the University ofMassachusetts Boston with a B.A. in Political Science and holds a Masters in International Relations from the American University in Cairo. His thesis focused on the politics of international oil and humanitarian intervention in Libya.
We've heard plenty about the GOP members of Congress and Trump political appointees who have "enabled" Donald Trump over these four years, failing to act to stem his excesses.
But what about the billionaire donors to Trump's campaign and his victory PACs? Especially those who gave substantial donations in 2019 and 2020, when it was clear that Trump was causing a crisis in our democracy?
Unlike those who gave to the 2016 campaign but distanced themselves from Trump after seeing him in action, will there be any accountability for these most recent billionaire enablers of Donald Trump who saw what damage he caused-but still stood by him?
These are the billionaires who already received their whopping individual and corporate tax cuts in 2017. Yet, empowered with their money, continued to contribute to Trump for four more years.
Watch for our forthcoming IPS report and reporting on "Trump's Billionaire Enablers." But here are a few initial findings:
The Institute for Policy Studies identified 63 U.S. billionaires who gave a combined $33 million to the Trump Victory Fund in the last two years. Trump Victory was a joint fundraising account for the Trump 2020 campaign and the Republican National Committee.
As of January 8th, these billionaires together have wealth of $243.7 billion dollars (using estimates from Wealth-X and Forbes).
Top Ten Billionaire Enablers. The top ten billionaire donors to the Trump Victory Fund are:
- Gas pipeline magnate Kelcy Lee Warren, worth $2.9 billion, gave eight donations totaling $2,248,906.
- Retired CEO of Marvel Entertainment, Isaac Perlmutter, is worth $5.8 billion and donated $1,871,200.
- Telecommunications mogul Kenny Troutt, worth $1.5 billion, donated $1,849,000.
- Biotech investor Robert Duggan, worth $2.6 billion, donated $1,638,200 to the Trump Victory Fund. In the final days of the campaign, Duggan gave $4.6 million to various Trump campaign groups, according to Forbes.
- Casino magnate Steve Wynn, worth $3 billion, contributed over $1,523,500.
- Another casino owner, Phillip Gene Ruffin, worth $2.3 billion, donated $1,375,000.
- Owner of ABC Supply, the giant home supplier, Diane Hendricks $8 billion (Forbes), donated $1,175,000.
- Casino megadonor Sheldon Adelson, and his wife Miriam Adelson, worth over $35.9 billion (Forbes), contributed $1.16 million, along with massive donations to other Republican PACs and candidates.
- Texas Banker Daniel Andrew Beal, worth $7.5 billion, gave $1,161,200.
- Software entrepreneur David Duffield, worth $13.3 billion, donated $1,151,600.
Other notable billionaires to the Trump Victory Fund include:
- Blackstone CEO Stephen Schwarzman, worth $20.9 billion, who gave $355,000.
- Johnson & Johnson heir Robert Wood Johnson IV, worth $2.5 billion, contributed $575,000.
- Hedge fund manager John Paulson, worth $4.2 billion, donated $831,372.
- Heir to the cosmetic fortune, Ronald Steven Lauder, worth $5.2 billion, gave $100,000.
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