A super PAC supporting presidential candidate Donald Trump has poured $1 million into assisting Trump and has also earmarked money to his campaign despite Trump’s previous disavowal of super PACs.
The Great America PAC was formed in January with the backing of Republican donor and Jewelry Exchange CEO William Doddridge, who previously supported the presidential bid of Sen. Rand Paul (R., Ky.).
The super PAC made ten different transactions on March 18 totaling $1,000,000 for television advertisements that will play in Pennsylvania, New York, Rhode Island, Maryland, and Delaware, according to FEC records of independent expenditures.
Dan Backer, the founding attorney of the campaign finance firm DB Capitol Strategies, is listed as the super PAC’s treasurer, while former Tea Party Express President Amy Kremer acts as its chair.
Jesse Benton, who previously worked as Mitch McConnell’s campaign manager before being embroiled in scandal relating to his work for Ron Paul’s 2012 presidential campaign, was brought on board as the group’s chief strategist. Benton was later acquitted of wrongdoing in the legal case about the 2012 scandal.
The $1 million ad buy appears to be the first major effort to support Trump.
Trump has been outspoken about his opposition to super PACs. Last year, he called on super PACs that supported him to return funds they had raised to their donors.
"We are providing this written notice that your organization is not authorized to use Mr. Trump's name and likeness in connection with its fundraising activities, and we are formally disavowing such activities," said letters from Trump’s attorneys to the groups.
"Thus, given the invocation of Donald J. Trump in connection with your activities, we ask that you refund all funds received by you in connection with any fundraising undertaken to specifically support and/or done in the name of Donald J. Trump … The campaign has never received money from your PAC, nor does the campaign want any money, services or goods from your committee," the letters stated.
At the time, nine super PACs in total were supporting his candidacy.
Great America, which was originally called TrumPAC, received a letter from one of Trump’s attorney saying it could not use Trump’s name in the title. The group changed its name shortly afterward.
"The campaign informed that PAC that they are not authorized to use our name and reiterated that Mr. Trump has disavowed all super PACs," a Trump spokeswoman wrote in an email to Politico.
Great America is registered as a "hybrid PAC," a designation that allows it to raise unlimited funds to promote or oppose political candidates while also being able to give a limited amount of money directly to candidates’ campaigns or committees.
The super PACs website states that the first $5 of every donation will be earmarked to Trump’s campaign.
"The first $5 of any contribution will be forwarded, in full, to Donald J. Trump for President, Inc. as an earmarked contribution," the site reads. "Any amount in excess of $5 is a contribution to Great America PAC, a federal political action committee, and will be used in connection with federal elections."
According to the PACs March financial statement, donations have indeed been earmarked from the super PAC to Trump’s campaign.
Neither DB Capitol Strategies nor the Trump campaign returned a request for comment on the super PAC’s activities by press time.