On Friday, attorneys for Donald Trump sent “cease and desist” letters to the Republican National Committee (RNC), the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC), and the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC). The letters demanded that each of the three fundraising groups cease “using his name and likeness for fundraising emails and merchandise.”
In his statement Monday night, Trump explained part of his strategy:
No more money for RINOs [Republicans In Name Only]. They do nothing but hurt the Republican Party and our great voting base — they will never lead us to Greatness.
Send your donations to Save America PAC at DonaldJTrump.com. We will bring it all back stronger than ever before!
If this works, Trump will accomplish two purposes: one, to starve the fundraising committees of vitally needed funding to support various Republican candidates, including those who opposed him by voting to impeach him.
Second, he will reinvest those funds in supporting candidates who do support him, as a runup to the midterms in 2022 and likely the presidential contest looming in 2024.
Jason Meister, a member of Trump’s campaign advisory board, fleshed out Trump’s overall plan:
RINOs no longer have a home in the Republican Party. The Trump Doctrine of America First is here to stay. The America First agenda has put a stop to the ruthless exploitation of American workers.
We openly embrace American exceptionalism and believe America belongs to Americans; we put America first and foremost.
The opening salvo in his bid to cleanse the Republican Party of such wafflers took place in mid-February when Trump launched his attack on former Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.
He followed that with his declaration at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) on February 28:
There’s only one way to contribute to our efforts, to elect America-first Republican conservatives and in turn to make America great again, and that’s through Save American PAC and DonaldJTrump.com….
We know the right people [to support].
Not on Trump’s list to support is Senator Lisa Murkowskj (R-Alaska), who was one of seven senators who voted to convict him on a charge of inciting the January 6 “insurrection.”
Also not on Trump’s list is Representative Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.). Trump told his CPAC audience that his supporters needed to “get rid of” all members of Congress who voted against him, which includes the noisily anti-Trump Cheney. Said Trump: “I will be actively working to elect strong, tough, and smart Republican leaders. RINOs will destroy the Republican Party.”
Andrea Widburg, writing at American Thinker, knows exactly what Trump is up to: “He’s getting rid of the conservative wing of the Democrat party (not a typo) and is positioning the Republican Party to represent a true populist, pro-American conservativism … he’s going to restore a pro-American Republican Party.”
Financial supporters of Trump’s plan to cleanse the Republican Party of RINOs will have to be careful, as the RNC insists that it has the right to continue to use Trump’s image in its fundraising efforts, even as those funds go to support those who voted to impeach Trump.
