Trump pledges $430K to help cover legal bills of aides amid Russia probe

[DonViejo]

BY JOSH DELK - 10/21/17 03:57 PM EDT

President Trump has pledged to spend at least $430,000 of his own money to help cover legal fees for White House aides and campaign staff related to the probe into Russia's election meddling.

A White House official Axios and The Washington Post on Saturday that Trump's pledge is not meant as a reimbursement for the Republican National Committee (RNC), which has spent a nearly identical amount to lawyers representing the president and his eldest son Donald Trump Jr.

The official told Axios that the money would be used to "to defray the costs of legal fees for his associates, including former and current White House aides."

The official said Trump's pledge did not preclude him from increasing the amount available for aides in the future, according to the Post.

more
http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/356551-trump-says-hell-pay-legal-bills-of-some-wh-staff-report

[spanone]

1. ...

[Eliot Rosewater]

3. you beat me to it, darnit

[kentuck]

6. ...

[LastLiberal in PalmSprings]

2. Well, that will eaten up by the lawyers in about a week.

[Tanuki]

4. Considering that they in all likelihood have information that could incriminate him,

how is this not a bribe? Not that they are likely to ever see a dime of the hush money, given 45's long history of stiffing anyone and everyone.

[Motley13]

5. they will be sitting in jail waiting for the check.

bet it's money from contributions he is pledging, can't see the moron spending a $ of his own $

He is trying to buy their silence

[TeamPooka]

7. "If you lie for me the check is in the mail."

[shraby]

8. Do I smell bribery?

[struggle4progress]

9. Reverses course on paying legal fees for man who attacked protester

By Philip Bump
March 15, 2016

Update Tuesday: Trump now tells ABC, a day after a county in North Carolina said it was looking into whether to charge Trump with inciting a riot (it won't), that he never actually said he wanted to pay the man's legal fees. "I didn’t say that. I haven’t looked at it yet. And nobody’s asked me to pay for fees,” Trump said. “I never said I was going to pay for fees.”

... "So if you see somebody getting ready to throw a tomato, knock the crap out of 'em, would you? Seriously. Okay? Just knock the hell — I promise you, I will pay for the legal fees. I promise. I promise" ...

... John McGraw, 78, slipped up a row of seats to the aisle where some protesters were being led out. Without warning, he apparently threw a punch ...

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/03/10/trump-once-said-he-would-pay-legal-fees-for-people-who-beat-up-protesters-now-that-its-happened-can-he/?utm_term=.bd1abeb9dd9e

[struggle4progress]

10. Using Republican donors' money

BY ABIGAIL TRACY
SEPTEMBER 20, 2017 10:28 AM

... "It’s called OPM. I do it all the time in business. It’s called other people’s money," he explained last year. "There's nothing like doing things with other people's money." So it should come as no surprise that Trump — however rich he really is — has turned to the Republican National Committee and his re-election campaign coffers to take the edge off the steep legal fees he has amassed amid Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation.

The legal defense for a sitting president is not cheap. CNN reported Tuesday that in August alone, the R.N.C. spent more than $230,000 on Trump’s legal defense—$131,250 and $100,000 to the president’s personal attorneys Jay Sekulow and John Dowd, respectively. The organization also spent just shy of $200,000 on legal fees for Donald Trump Jr., an executive at the Trump Organization. According to CNN, the R.N.C. paid more than $166,000 to the eldest Trump son’s attorney Alan Futerfas and $30,000 to the Williams & Jensen firm ...

https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2017/09/donald-trump-rnc-campaign-legal-fees

[struggle4progress]

11. Using campaign, RNC funds to pay legal bills from Russia probe

SEPTEMBER 19, 2017 / 3:55 PM / A MONTH AGO
Karen Freifeld, Ginger Gibson

... Trump is using money donated to his re-election campaign and the Republican National Committee to pay for his lawyers in the probe of alleged Russian interference in the U.S. election ...

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-lawyers-exclusive/trump-using-campaign-rnc-funds-to-pay-legal-bills-from-russia-probe-sources-idUSKCN1BU2OS

[ProudLib72]

15. This is wonderful news!

I am fully on board with this. In fact, he should hire even more worthless lawyers who charge exorbitant rates. Bankrupt the RNC.

[gratuitous]

12. Suggestion: Get it in writing, aides

Even then, you have no guarantees. I wonder if donors to the Trump campaign intended their money be used for this?

[KelleyKramer]

13. Trump has pledged to spend... HaHahahaha, bwhaaaa

That's how far I got reading that

This is hilarious if anyone actually believes it

Is the Hill trying to put the Onion out of business?

[imanamerican63]

14. No wonder he keeps falling on the Forbes' list?