Welcome to the online version of From the political officean evening newsletter that brings you the latest reporting and analysis from the NBC News Politics team from the White House, Capitol Hill and the campaign trail.
In today’s edition, Senior White House reporter Peter Nicholas examines how Donald Trump is overshadowing the final weeks of Joe Biden’s presidency. Plus, we look at why Kamala Harris and Trump’s campaigns spent their money in the final days of the 2024 race.
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Trump isn’t president yet, but that hasn’t stopped him from starting to act like he is.
By Pierre Nicolas
Foreign leaders lined up to speak to him. He shook Mexico and Canada with threats of high tariffs and warned there would be “hell to pay” for militants in Gaza unless they released the hostages as he was sworn in.
It won’t happen for another 45 days, but Donald Trump, the sitting president, has no qualms about acting like the president in reality.
Trump cannot yet sign a bill or issue an executive order, but he is ousting Joe Biden as the sitting president ends his term and gradually recedes from public view. On two foreign trips since the election, Biden took both questions from reporters.
He had to be content with Trump’s statements: “I hope he thinks about it againhe said of Trump’s plan to impose 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico – rather than pursue his own agenda.
As for Trump, “his view is that he won’t follow rules that he considers stupid rules,” said a former senior White House official during Trump’s first term. “His view is that these are hostages and if he can help get them home, then why would he follow protocol if it’s going to impact people’s lives?”
At this point, Trump is “already running things, and he’s not even president yet,” the person added.
Trump’s penchant for delving into current events puts to the test the dictum that presidents are supposed to honor but, for reasons of political expediency or practical necessity, usually don’t.
This weekend, Trump will join French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris for the reopening of Notre Dame Cathedral, five years after it was devastated by fire. Biden was invited but chose not to attend, a White House official said.
Trump’s return to the world stage after a four-year hiatus, coupled with news about his hiring, has overshadowed Biden’s trip to sub-Saharan Africa this week, during which he dealt with the fallout from the total forgiveness he gave to his son Hunter.
How Harris’ campaign spent $277 million in recent weeks
By Bridget Bowman, Ben Kamisar and Joe Murphy
Despite an insufficient vote count, Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign raised and spent about twice as much as President-elect Trump in the final days of the 2024 election and the weeks that followed, according to new campaign finance reports.
The Harris campaign raised $160 million and spent $277 million from October 25 to November 25, the period covered in the latest reports filed with the Federal Election Commission, while the Trump campaign raised $87 million and spent $113 million dollars over this period.
The largest share of spending by both campaigns was on media buys and ad production, with the Harris campaign spending $129 million to Trump’s $95.1 million, according to an analysis of spending in new filings .
The Harris campaign spent significantly more than Trump’s on directly contacting voters, bringing in a total of $25.4 million on text messages, canvassing, phone calls and direct mail. Trump’s campaign spent $3 million on “text messaging advertising” and just $1,500 on printing and posting direct mail, underscoring how the campaign outsourced a large part of its field operations to other groups.
Harris’ campaign also devoted a much larger share of its funds to events, racking up at least $45.5 million in payments (17% of its total operating expenses in this report) to pay for event production, audiovisual services, equipment rental and supplies. and event security.
The Trump campaign, meanwhile, reported spending $632,000, or less than 1% of its operating expenses, on events.
The Harris campaign paid $165,000 to a production company affiliated with Beyoncé Knowles-Carter, which spoke at a rally in late October in Houston. Companies affiliated with musicians Katy Perry, Ricky Martin and Christina Aguilera (all three of whom appeared at Harris events in the final weeks of the campaign) also received six-figure payments. And others affiliated with musicians like Bruce Springsteen, John Legend and Jason Isbell also received smaller checks.
The celebrities themselves were not paid, a campaign official previously told NBC Newsbut the campaign had to pay the costs associated with production and their travel. Campaign finance laws state that campaigns must pay the market value of everything they receive, including entertainment at events.
💲More calculations: The new campaign finance reports also revealed that billionaire Elon Musk poured more than $20 million into a mysterious super PAC at the end of the campaign, part of the more than $250 million he spent in total to strengthen Trump. Read more →
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