Secretive billionaire donates $50 million to Trump support group

The New York Times on June 20 cited disclosures showing that billionaire Timothy Mellon, heir to the massive fortune left by the late Treasury Secretary Andrew Mellon (1855-1937), donated $50 million to the Make America Great Again (MAGA) super political action committee (PAC) supporting Mr. Trump.

The donation came shortly after Mr Trump was convicted of falsifying business records in New York to conceal hush money payments to porn stars.

Which billionaire is donating the most to support Mr. Trump?

In May, MAGA received more than $68 million in funding, most of it from Mr. Mellon and $10 million from billionaires Liz and Dick Uihlein, founders of the Uline shipping and packaging company, according to Reuters.

This election cycle, Mr. Mellon has donated $100 million to candidates, the first person to reach that milestone. He is the largest donor to super PACs supporting Mr. Trump and independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Mr. Trump at a community event in Michigan on June 15.

Democrats believe that Mr. Kennedy is a rival in the race to reduce President Joe Biden's votes, thereby increasing the chance of victory for Republican candidate Mr. Donald Trump.

Mr. Mellon has sponsored a number of anti-immigration measures and is a major donor to a Texas-led fund to build a wall on the US border with Mexico. In 2020, Mr. Mellon endorsed Mr. Trump in his run against Mr. Biden.

According to USA Today , Mr. Mellon lives in Wyoming and is very private, rarely photographed. He is an amateur pilot and has invested in transportation-related companies such as Pan American World Airways. Forbes estimates the Mellon family has a net worth of $14.1 billion.

In 2016, Mr. Mellon self-published an autobiography that criticized black people for using welfare programs. A book with the same title is scheduled to be published in July, with a cover quote from Mr. Kennedy: “Tim Mellon was a brilliant businessman who embodied the most admirable qualities of what FDR called ‘American industrial genius.’”

Mr. Mellon donated at least $20 million to the pro-Kennedy super PAC, American Values, according to Reuters. However, according to the organization's announcement on June 20, it received only about $280,000 in donations in May, and none from Mr. Mellon.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/ti-phu-kin-tieng-tai-tro-50-trieu-usd-cho-nhom-ung-ho-ong-trump-185240621082725052.htm