Former president Donald Trump ‘s niece, Mary Trump, is slamming him in response to accusations that the former president established a “legal fund” that did not pay legal fees at all.
First discovered on December 12, Raw Story reported that a legal defense fund established to support Trump during his several criminal charges hasn’t paid for legal bills, its biggest expense being a lavish celebration held at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago country club.
🚨🚨🚨MAJOR BREAKING: Mary Trump just reported that her uncle Donald Trump’s legal fund has been CAUGHT putting money directly in Trump’s pocket. Even though the fund raised $1.6 million was raised, ZERO dollars were used on legal fees. Instead, the fund spent $18,136 for a… pic.twitter.com/6a9iOZ6XOI
— CALL TO ACTIVISM (@CalltoActivism) December 14, 2023
Over six months in 2023, Trump’s legal defense fund has raised almost $1.6 million and spent less than $30,000. The Daily Beast noted that the legal defense group had minimal expenditures, but it was really important what they didn’t spend money on: which was legal services, and what they did pay for: which was a party at Mar-a-Lago.
On her Substack , psychologist Mary Trump—who previously predicted that Republicans would receive a “reckoning” in the next big election—presented the material to lawyer Joe Gallina, who claimed to have noticed “red flags” in Trump’s IRS files. “The stated purpose of the fund, started by long-time Trump advisor Michael Glassner, is to help Donald with his enormous legal fees.
However, it has spent ZERO dollars on legal fees. Instead, the fund’s largest expense was $18,136 for a party at Mar-a-Lago—while the rest of the money is NOT being used for its intended purpose,” she wrote. “Why would a fund created to cover legal fees supposedly instead put money directly into Donald’s pocket? What does Donald know about it?”
Democrats saying Mar-A-Lago is worth $18 million dollars is the biggest joke of 2023. pic.twitter.com/7ouWTMepi9
— Dom Lucre | Breaker of Narratives (@dom_lucre) December 7, 2023
Of the $28,578 in expenses, Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club received $18,136 for “banquet hall” costs in late November. Gallina allegedly told Mary that this was against the organization’s fiduciary responsibility. “Non-profits like the Patriot Legal Defense Fund have a fiduciary duty to their donors to use their resources for their stated purpose,” Gallina said. “This is a fundamental principle of non-profit law. If a non-profit misuses funds, it is FRAUD.”
The Caryn L. Hildenbrand Living Trust made the largest single donation to the fund. According to court documents, Caryn and Michael Borland own the trust. Because of their strong support for QAnon, the Trump campaign canceled an event scheduled for October 2020.
According to the QAnon conspiracy theory, Trump is attempting to protect America from a covert organization of Satanic pedophiles who control the entire world. Some of the idea’s proponents also think that John F. Kennedy Jr., who is still alive, is collaborating with Trump.
Mary Trump also noted that “the last time a Donald-related fund faced scrutiny, people went to prison.” Mary explained that co-founder of BUILD THE WALL Brian Kolfage received a four-year jail term after raising money under pretenses to allegedly construct a wall along the US-Mexico border, and then embezzling the money away. ”
Two other co-defendants, Andrew Badolato, and Timothy Shea, were sentenced to three and five years in prison respectively. Steve Bannon was also charged in the scheme received a last-minute pardon from Donald at the end of his term. He’ll face NY state-related charges in 2024 — and Donald can’t pardon him on state charges,” she wrote.
Veteran sentenced to prison for US border wall fraud scheme Brian Kolfage has received a four-year sentence for pocketing donations raised to help build Donald Trump’s border wall. pic.twitter.com/2u02eBxFd5
— ConstanZe 🕊 (@Constanze2022) April 27, 2023
Editor’s note: This article was originally published on December 15, 2023. It has since been updated.