On the last Sunday in September, Donald J. Trump sat at the dining table in his triplex penthouse apartment on the top floor of Trump Tower, along with some of the most popular and wealthiest figures in the Republican Party.
There was Paul Singer, a billionaire hedge fund manager who funds Republican campaigns and pro-Israel causes, and Warren Stevens, a billionaire investment banker. Also in attendance were billionaire Betsy DeVos and her husband Dick, former education secretary in the Trump administration, and billionaire Joe Ricketts and his son Todd.
Some politicians may have used this opportunity to charm and curry favor with donors.
Not Mr. Trump. Over a steak and baked potato, the former president combed through a list of bitter grievances.
He made it clear that people, including donors, need to do more, appreciate him more and help more.
He belittled Vice President Kamala Harris, calling her “retarded.” He said there is a need to examine the heads of Jews who did not support Harris and still support her despite all she has done for the state of Israel. complained about the number of Jews.
At one point, Trump seemed to suggest that these donors had a lot to be thankful for. He was bragging about how great he was at paying taxes, but some privately pointed out that wasn’t true for everyone present.
The rant, told by seven people familiar with the meal who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations, underscored the reality three weeks before Election Day: Mr. Trump’s often fractious mood in the closing stages. And one of the reasons for his frustration is money. He was lagging behind his Democratic rivals in the race for funding and had to fight to keep raising money.
Ms. Harris has raised $1 billion in less than three months as a candidate (more than Mr. Trump has raised in a year), giving her far more money to buy advertising and pay staff costs. Not only that, but I was also freed from various problems. No more begging donors directly. She raised more than twice as much money as Trump in July, August and September.
At about the same time that Trump sat down for dinner at Trump Tower, Harris was speaking 3,000 miles away at a $28 million event at the JW Marriott Ballroom in Los Angeles.
Her advisers say this is the last fundraiser she plans to attend before the election.
Trump remains in a close race, with a memo released this week claiming Trump has a lead in every battleground state, but the lead in those polls is all within the margin of error. It was. Her campaign has more explicitly linked Harris to President Biden, arguing that she has failed to implement her own policies in her three and a half years as vice president. And this election cycle, they feel more confident asking donors to help them.
Still, Mr. Trump is frustrated by the amount of time he has to spend raising money and resents his lack of commitment to his rallies, which are his source of energy.
Those tensions have become more acute since Trump’s campaign had to adjust some events due to heightened security threats against him. These threats forced him to give up golf, his favorite form of relaxation, for the rest of the campaign.
Trump’s press secretary, Caroline Leavitt, did not comment on the dinner, but said the former president had lost and won before and predicted another victory.
“If money had guaranteed electoral success, Hillary Clinton would have been president,” she said. “Kamala Harris has spent hundreds of millions of dollars and has done worse than any Democrat who has ever run against President Trump. Meanwhile, President Trump’s finances have never been better. , which is also leading in public opinion polls.
Mr. Trump did not make a direct request for funding at the Trump Tower dinner, which also included members of the American Opportunity Alliance, a network of Republican capitalists. Some dinner attendees left shaking their heads at the former president’s behavior, but there is no indication that the exchange will affect donations.
“President Trump is doing well,” Todd Ricketts, whose family owns the Chicago Cubs, said in a statement. “It was a great dinner. We left stronger than ever to get him back to the White House.”
A person familiar with Mr. Trump’s thinking said his comments reflected the idea that he was speaking primarily to a group of donors with networks that have supported his major rivals.
And even Trump’s most scathing remarks seemed to leave no real trace. One Jewish dinner attendee asked the former president if he felt dissatisfied with Jewish voters, imagining how his right-wing Jewish supporters felt, according to a person with knowledge of the matter. He said he should.
DeVos’s appearance was notable because she resigned from Trump’s cabinet the day after the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot after criticizing Trump’s comments leading up to the riot. That is also a factor.
Mr. Trump has been forced to hold events this month in non-competitive states, hat in hand. Three days after the dinner at Trump Tower, he traveled to Texas for fundraisers in Houston and Midland. On the same day, Harris visited the battleground state of Georgia and spoke about recovery efforts after Hurricane Helen.
Next Wednesday, Trump will host a “candlelight dinner” at his Mar-a-Lago club for donors who have donated or raised $924,600. Those who donate $250,000 will be able to participate in a private roundtable. He plans to hold a larger reception for small donors, meaning those giving at least $5,000 or more. Harris plans to campaign in the key battleground state of Pennsylvania on the same day, according to people briefed on the plan.
Mr. Trump was concerned about how much money the Democratic Party had even before Ms. Harris became the front-runner to replace President Biden and began pouring in tons of donations.
In July, Trump sent a series of offensive text messages to Miriam Adelson, the widow of casino magnate Sheldon Adelson and a donor who has already given tens of millions of dollars to support him. . Their relationship has since mended, but Trump told colleagues earlier this year that he expected $250 million from her, according to people familiar with the numbers he used.
Such unreasonable demands have become commonplace for Mr. Trump. During a meeting with representatives of major oil and gas companies at Mar-a-Lago in April, Trump told executives that his policies were so good for companies that they should raise $1 billion. That’s what he said.
Trump, whose assets have made him a billionaire, has not contributed money to his campaign since 2016, and political action committees affiliated with him are paying legal fees related to his indictments and lawsuits. Nor has it reported that it has provided any funds to Save America. A criminal trial resulting in a conviction for a felony.
Ms. Harris has more than doubled Mr. Trump’s wealth in the past three months, and her advantage is playing out online, on television and in front of voters in key battleground states. For example, in the past 90 days, Harris has spent more than $77 million on advertising on Meta platforms such as Facebook and Instagram. Mr. Trump spent only a fraction of that amount, $9 million, according to company records.
Ms. Harris spent between $101.6 million and $48.3 million in September, more than double what Mr. Trump spent on television, according to ad tracking service AdImpact. But current bookings say he’s on pace to roughly match her spending in October and November.
Trump’s team appears to have found another way to conserve cash in the final stages. For example, he is participating in an Oct. 23 rally in Georgia as a “special guest” of Turning Point PAC, an allied group that will help pay for the rally.
It’s the same approach cash-strapped Gov. Ron DeSantis used during the Republican primary. Another group, Building America’s Future, will host a “Hispanic Roundtable” in Nevada this weekend, with Trump as a guest.
And while Mr. Trump has been lifted by some donations from billionaires such as reclusive banking heir Timothy Mellon, who has given $125 million to supportive super PACs, Democratic super PACs also has sufficient funds. According to AdImpact, pro-Harris voters are expected to spend 30% more on TV than pro-Trump voters in October and November.
Still, last month’s dinner with millionaires said Trump sees defeating Harris as a vital duty, with donors now saying Trump is rebuilding a party that has largely accepted the former president’s rants. showed tenacity.
After the Sept. 29 meal, Mr. Singer, who had already donated $5 million to Mr. Trump’s super PAC, left the event with a clear message to his donor network, according to people familiar with the conversation. He implored Republicans and Trump to make large donations.
Theodore Schleifer contributed reporting.
