Trump’s PAC has paid at least $40 million in legal fees for him and others in the first half of 2023 related to the multiple investigations and prosecutions of Donald Trump, leading prosecutors to question potential conflicts of interest among the group of lawyers common among defendants, the Washington Post reports.
In federal filings due Monday, Save America PAC is expected to list $40.2 million in spending on legal affairs covering Donald Trump and the increasing number of people drawn into the investigations and grand jury inquiries on federal, state, and local levels who request its assistance. It is the single greatest category of spending for the PAC this year so far. Since Trump left the White House, his PAC has spent $56 million in legal fees.
Prosecutors are also making a point of asking potential witnesses if they know who is paying for their legal counsel and what other witnesses, targets or defendants that lawyer may be representing. Funded largely through small-dollar donors, the PAC is the best way to pay for the legal fees of those drawn into the inquiries, Trump advisors say, particularly those who could not afford legal fees themselves. The fact that only a small number of lawyers will work for Trump-affiliated clients is another issue.