Conservative commentator Ann Coulter joined a growing chorus of critics who mocked former President Donald Trump following reports that his wife, Melania Trump, received a payment of $155,000 from a super PAC associated with the former president. The Make America Great Again, Again PAC, which was a leading pro-Trump super PAC, allegedly made the payment to Melania for a “speaking engagement” in December 2021. The payment was not initially disclosed in federal reports but was revealed after Trump filed an expenditure disclosure.
The New York Times reported that the super PAC’s expenditure report did not mention Melania’s name, but it showed payments made to “Designer’s Management Agency” for “event planning and consulting” on December 2 and December 3, 2021. The treasurer of the PAC stated that the payments complied with reporting requirements.
Ann Coulter, who had previously been an ally of Trump but has since become critical of him, took to Twitter to sarcastically criticize the former president over the payment. She referred to the payment as a “grift” and mocked Trump for fundraising based on his claims of election fraud and his legal troubles, including investigations by the Department of Justice related to the 2020 election and classified documents found at his Mar-a-Lago estate.
Other Republicans also expressed their disapproval of Trump’s actions. Former Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson, who is running against Trump in the 2024 presidential election, tweeted that Trump’s behavior was “outrageous” and that political leaders should seek to enrich everyday Americans instead of themselves. Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, also a contender for the 2024 election, called Trump “shameless” for using donor money to pay personal legal fees and paying his wife more than double the average American’s income for seemingly trivial expenses.
Not a grift at all. https://t.co/gESV8Mlf8q
— Ann Coulter (@AnnCoulter) July 14, 2023
