Trump's Inaugural Fund Set To Break Record As US Businesses Line-Up To Donate

Wall Street and corporate America, which had majorly endorsed Kamala Harris in the run-up to the US presidential election, are now seeking to make inroads with the incoming US president Donald Trump, with several business leaders pledging to donate big bucks to his inaugural committee. Reports suggest that the Republican leader's second inaugural fund may even exceed the record-setting $107 million raised in 2017. 

Some of the biggest donors include OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, Jeff Bezos's Amazon, and Mark Zuckerberg-led Meta, who have all pledged  $1 million each, according to a report by The Guardian. 

As per the report, Uber and its CEO Dara Khosrowshahi, along with automobile giants Toyota, General Motors, and Ford are also each peeling off $1 million. Ford is also reportedly adding a fleet of vehicles to its donations.

According to a Bloomberg report, Hedge-fund manager Ken Griffin also plans to donate $1 million. More donations from finance leaders are also reportedly in the works.

Why Everybody Want To Be Trump's Friend?

Last week, the President-elect wrote on his Truth Social, "EVERYBODY WANTS TO BE MY FRIEND!!!" 

Empowered by his landslide electoral victory, Donald Trump has promised to revamp the US economic policy in a way that could majorly benefit a few favoured industries. He has also placed value on face-to-face meetings, prompting many senior executives in US industries and finance to make a trip to Mar-a-Lago, Mr Trump's transition team headquarters. 

Inaugural committees are appointed by presidents-elect to plan and fund most of the pomp that traditionally surrounds the transfer of power from one administration to the next. 

Among those who visited the Mar-a-Lago estate is Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg. Mr Trump also recently met with Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai, Apple CEO Tim Cook and Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos.

Mr Trump's inaugural committee presents a "unique opportunity" for business leaders to gain influence with and access to the incoming, Brendan Glavin, director of research for the money-in-politics nonprofit OpenSecrets, told CNBC.  

"None of these people, they don't want to be Trump's punching bag for four years," he added.

"One of the oldest adages in Washington is that if you're not at the table, you're on the menu, and the price of admission to have a seat at the table keeps going up," Michael Beckel, director of the political reform advocacy group Issue One, told the outlet.

Donations Set To Break Record

ABC News reported that the Trump-Vance inaugural committee is on track to set a new record in inauguration fundraising, as pledged contributions have already surpassed its fundraising goal of $150 million. 

Mr Trump's first inaugural holds the record for receiving maximum funding at $107 million, followed by Joe Biden's 2021 inaugural which raised $63 million, Barack Obama's 2009 inauguration which raised $53 million and his 2013 inaugural at $42 million. 

Companies Toeing Republican lines

The Wall Street Journal reported that dozens of US companies that pledged to "withhold support from those who disputed the 2020 election results" are now lining up to fund Donald Trump's inauguration.

The report identified 11 such enterprises including Ford, Intuit, Toyota and the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA), who have all pledged to donate $1 million each. 

Other major donors to Mr Trump's inaugural, who also made January 6 related pledges include Goldman Sachs, General Motors, Bank of America, AT&T and Stanley Black & Decker. 

For Goldman Sachs, Intuit, Toyota and PhRMA, this reportedly marks the first time in at least a decade that they are supporting an inauguration fund.

Per the Journal report, entities who donate $1 million or raise $2 million for Mr Trump's inaugural are set to receive six tickets to a series of pre-inauguration events, including a reception with cabinet picks, a "candlelight dinner" with Donald and Melania Trump and a black-tie ball.

"The old saying is, if you're not at the table, you're on the menu...There's going to be a lot of work being done in 2025 and 2026, and the process starts now," Kevin Madden, a longtime Republican strategist told the outlet.