The Republican National Committee appears to have a cash flow problem — incoming and outgoing.
Despite boasting of a $12 million fundraising haul in January, the RNC posted the worst fundraising numbers in a decade in 2023, and, when adjusting for inflation, it was the worst since 1993, according to the Washington Examiner.
Considering the sobering news, you might expect to see frugal decision-making when it comes to outflow. Right?
The Republican National Committee’s year-end filing reveals it had its worst fundraising year since 2013 in absolute dollars and its worst since 1993 in inflation-adjusted figures.
It raised $87.2M, spent $93.5M, and had just $8M on hand and $1.8m in debt. pic.twitter.com/QByea9v5d5
— Rob Pyers (@rpyers) February 1, 2024
Think again. When comparing RNC expenses to payouts by the Democratic National Committee (DNC), some eye-popping entries stand out.
Under the direction of Ronna McDaniel, the RNC spent $1.5 million on floral arrangements, private jets, and media consultants, according to RedState investigative journalist Jennifer Van Laar.
The figures, taken from the Federal Election Commission between Oct. 2022 and Nov. 2023, show that the GOP organization spent over $250,000 on limousines, while the DNC spent about $7,000. The RNC dropped nearly $300,000 on office supplies expenses, compared to just $45,000 by the DNC. Another $70,328 was spent on floral arrangements, while Democrats dropped $795.
Management consulting, the bread and butter of the Republican political machine, garnered over $1 million while the DNC spent just $114,000.
Where did Democrats top Republicans in spending?
The DNC spent more in “get out the vote” texting, $1.6 million compared to just $86,019. The DNC also spent $235,865 on voter file maintenance compared to the RNC’s $39,223. But the largest difference was transfers to state parties, with the DNC transferring $23,835,437 compared to $13,800,200 for the RNC.
Van Laar also reported that committee members were informed on Wednesday that a $10 million line of credit the RNC executive committee is seeking will be “collateralized with the RNC donor list.”
SCOOP: Multiple sources tell me that the RNC Winter Meeting today committee members were told that the $10 million line of credit the RNC Executive Committee is seeking ($5 million of which is used in the proposed 2024 budget) will be collateralized with the RNC donor list.…
— Jennifer Van Laar (@jenvanlaar) February 1, 2024
The conclusion some are drawing can be seen below: “The RNC is basically broke, and we have a Presidential election in 279 days. Everything is fine.”
The RNC is basically broke, and we have a Presidential election in 279 days.
Everything is fine. ♀️♀️♀️♀️ pic.twitter.com/SL8recrZLa
— Liberty Belle (@iLibertyBelle) February 1, 2024
The RNC wasted little time in attacking Van Laar’s reporting, denouncing her findings as “drastic mischaracterizations and gross inaccuracies.”
“Here we go. Memo sent by Christine Toretti, Chair of the RNC’s Standing Budget Committee, to the 168 members of the RNC regarding my story,” the reporter tweeted, while sharing a copy of the memo. “It’s inaccurate and defamatory and I wasn’t going to share it but since others who aren’t in the 168 have shared parts of it, I am going to defend myself.”
“First, they never sent me FEC filings, and they didn’t try to ‘reason’ with me,” Van Laar continued. “They tried to bully and gaslight me and have me chasing squirrels to distract from publishing – to buy time. It worked for about, ah, 12 hours, until I satisfied myself that they weren’t acting in good faith.”
Jennifer, you continue spreading misinformation and lies to fit your agenda and narrative. The idea that you worked in good faith is absurd. Your initial email gave us 60 minutes to respond.
You are a sad, pathetic joke. https://t.co/jsgsxuRyPh
— Keith Schipper (@SchipperKeith) February 2, 2024
Writers and editors can be contacted at [email protected] with feedback, tips, or corrections.
Tom Tillison grew up in Maryland before moving to Central Florida as a young teen. It is in the Sunshine State that he honed both his passion for politics and his writing skills. Tillison also contributes to BizPac Review.
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