‘Wouldn’t give him a nickel’: Donald Trump abandoned by mega donors

Donors who previously flooded Donald Trump with millions of dollars in campaign funding now say they now “wouldn’t give him a nickel”.

More and more big-money bundlers are abandoning former US president Donald Trump’s bid to return to the White House in 2024 in favour of rising GOP stars like Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.

Billionaire cosmetics heir Ronald Lauder “has no plans to support Trump,” his spokesman told the New York Post on Wednesday.

Mr Lauder, 78, contributed just under $US100,000 ($A148,300) to the Republican National Committee when it was backing the 76-year-old Mr Trump’s re-election effort in 2019, according to the website OpenSecrets.

He also donated $US2700 ($A4000) directly to Mr Trump in November 2017, the maximum allowed at the time under federal law.

Mr Lauder’s spokesman did not say whom he might back in 2024, but OpenSecrets also indicates the billionaire gave $US200,000 ($A296,700) to Mr DeSantis’ first gubernatorial campaign in 2018.

Official Florida campaign finance records also show Mr Lauder gave another $US10,000 ($A14,800) to the Friends of Ron DeSantis PAC in July of 2021.

Former US president Donald Trump’s mega donors are abandoning him as he launches his third presidential election campaign. Picture: Alon Skuy/AFP

Mr Lauder’s rejection of the 45th president comes after two more New York-based billionaires, metal mogul Andy Sabin and private equity CEO Stephen Schwarzman, spoke out against Mr Trump.

“I wouldn’t give him a f***ing nickel,” Mr Sabin told the Post on Wednesday, the day after Mr Trump launched his third consecutive presidential campaign at Mar-a-Lago.

“What I’m telling you is what most people I know think but are afraid to say …

“I don’t really give a sh*t. Trump does nothing to help my life. My businesses couldn’t be better without Trump.”

Mr Sabin, who contributed $US120,000 ($A178,000) to Mr Trump’s unsuccessful 2020 re-election campaign, blamed the former president for “single-handedly” ruining the GOP’s prospects in last week’s midterm elections, in which Democrats kept control of the Senate and Republicans were on track to record a bare majority in the House.

“He’s not a good person. He could be helpful but it’s all about him,” Mr Sabin said of Mr Trump. “It’s time for the party to move on, to the [Virginia Governor Glenn] Youngkins and [Senator] Tim Scott, let them transform the party into what it should be.”

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. Picture: Eva Marie Uzcategui/AFP

Florida records show Mr Sabin contributed $US55,000 ($A81,600) this year to the Friends of Ron DeSantis PAC, and he plans to back the Sunshine State governor if he gets in the 2024 presidential race.

However, Mr Sabin acknowledged that if Mr Trump’s early entry clears the GOP field, he would hold his nose and vote for him again.

“I would vote for him over a Democrat,” he told the Post. “I would vote for a turtle over a Democrat.”

Meanwhile, Mr Schwarzman – who contributed $US3 million ($A4.45 million) to the pro-Trump America First Action super PAC in 2020 and gave more than $US35 million ($A51.91 million) to Republican candidates in this past election cycle – told Axios in a statement on Wednesday that he too was done with the former president.

“It is time for the Republican Party to turn to a new generation of leaders and I intend to support one of them in the presidential primaries,” he said. “America does better when its leaders are rooted in today and tomorrow, not today and yesterday.”

The defections of Mr Sabin and Mr Schwarzman come after Citadel hedge fund CEO and founder Ken Griffin, who gave more than $US60 million ($A89 million) to GOP midterm candidates, told Politico just before Election Day that he was tired of Mr Trump.

“He did a lot of things really well and missed the mark on some important areas,” Mr Griffin said earlier this month. “And for a litany of reasons, I think it’s time to move on to the next generation.”

Mr Griffin, a Florida native who is overseeing the building of a new Citadel office in Miami, added that Mr DeSantis “has a tremendous record as governor of Florida, and our country would be well-served by him as president.”

The 54-year-old hedge fund boss gave a whopping $US5 million ($A7.42 million) to Mr DeSantis’ successful re-election campaign this year.

So far, Mr Trump is the only person who has officially launched a 2024 presidential campaign. Mr Biden has said he intends to run for re-election but will hold off on making a final decision until early next year.

Meanwhile, one prominent New York Republican told the Post last week that “DeSantis is running.”

“He’s talking to donors in New York. He has good friends here. He’s been up to the Hamptons [for fundraisers],” said the top GOPer, who added that other Republicans are talking up Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin, who is seen as more charismatic than Mr DeSantis.

Mr Trump is seemingly aware that he could face a tough battle against either Mr DeSantis or Mr Youngkin, lashing out at both governors in several Truth Social posts over the past week.

“Now that the Election in Florida is over, and everything went quite well, shouldn’t it be said that in 2020, I got 1.1 Million more votes in Florida than Ron D got this year, 5.7 Million to 4.6 Million? Just asking?” Mr Trump wrote on November 10.

A day later, he bizarrely said Mr Youngkin’s last name “Sounds Chinese” and claimed the Virginian “couldn’t have won without me” last year.

“Young Kin (now that’s an interesting take. Sounds Chinese, doesn’t it?) in Virginia couldn’t have won without me,” the former president said. “I Endorsed him, did a very big Trump Rally for him telephonically, got MAGA to Vote for him – or he couldn’t have come close to winning.”

Days prior to Mr Trump’s campaign kick-off, an insider told the Post that the former president was “talking about raising over $1.5 billion with donors big and small.”

It was unclear how much the absence of Mr Lauder, Mr Griffin, Mr Sabin and Mr Schwarzman’s money could affect that goal.

This article originally appeared on the New York Post and was reproduced with permission