Trump Rallies: Campaign-Funded, For A Reason
Style Magazine Newswire | 3/15/2017, 11:30 a.m.
Donald Trump gives inaugural address.
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- President Donald Trump on Wednesday will fly into Nashville to rally thousands of supporters for the second time in his two-month-old presidency.
But unlike the events his predecessors held to build support for their agenda, Trump's rally is being organized and funded by his presidential reelection campaign rather than the White House -- a move that is raising eyebrows among campaign finance experts, veteran political operatives and officials from the last three administrations.
Presidents typically rely on federal funds when they head out to sell their agenda and turn up the political pressure on members of Congress. Their reelection campaigns don't begin to pick up the tab until opponents start to crop up. Trump, in contrast, has filed legal forms allowing his campaign committee to fundraise for his reelection, but has not yet publicly announced his intention to run.
The decision to hold campaign-funded rallies will give Trump more flexibility -- from deciding who's allowed in to helping the campaign build out its database of supporters' contact information.
Michael Glassner, the Trump campaign's executive director, said the move will allow Trump to rely on the campaign's "very effective method of promoting his appearances and filling these venues."
It also means the campaign use campaign dollars to advertise the events and sell campaign merchandise -- think "Make America Great Again" hats -- to all the eager supporters who attend, Glassner said.
That will help recreate the feeling of Trump's trademark campaign rallies, firing up his base and even Trump himself in the process.
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