Former administration staffers almost always leverage their connections after they leave the White House. Few have shown as much ingenuity as former presidential adviser Sebastian Gorka.
Since being forced from the White House, Gorka has written columns, delivered speeches, and appeared on television to offer various insights into the actions of the administration — all standard money-making gigs. But his new racket is something truly unique, if not entirely ethical: Gorka appears to be selling political endorsements to pro-Trump congressional candidates.
Gorka was paid $5,240 by Arizona Senate candidate Kelli Ward, according to FEC filings. The payment was billed as a “speaking fee”, and the disbursement was made on March 29.
“Honored to be here and support her in her fight to represent Arizona in the Senate to DRAIN the Swamp,” Gorka tweeted that same day from Phoenix. He gave a speech. He did radio interviews. He offered an endorsement that Ward has made certain to flaunt on the campaign trail, on social media, and on television.
But Gorka did not disclose that he was getting paid. There’s no way $5,240 only covers flights and lodging, so it’s unrealistic the payment was reimbursement.
Tonight in Phoenix @kelliwardaz opens by recognizing our Vietnam veterans.
Honored to be here and support her in her fight to represent Arizona in the Senate to DRAIN the Swamp.
#VietnamVeteransDay pic.twitter.com/Q67EfH8BU6
— Sebastian Gorka DrG (@SebGorka) March 30, 2018
The Ward campaign did not respond to a March email about possible payments. But after records of the payment were made public in May, Ward spokesman Zachery Henry was nonchalant about the money.
“The campaign certainly didn’t mind paying Dr. Sebastian Gorka an appearance fee,” Henry said in a statement to the Washington Examiner. “Dr. Ward earned Dr. Gorka’s endorsement months before he flew to Arizona to rally with her because of her strong support of President Trump and the America First agenda.”
When asked about that prepayment endorsement, Henry pointed to a picture the two took at an October 2017 party hosted by Breitbart News.
That Gorka and Ward would snap a picture together isn’t unusual. They share similar political ideologies. But that doesn’t make the arrangement any less innovative because Gorka appears to be pioneering a new pay-to-play racket.
It is extremely rare for candidates to pay their endorsers. A search of FEC records for “honorarium” or “speaking fees” offered few results. In the last two election cycles, only three House candidates paid speaking fees averaging less than $2,000. That makes the Gorka enterprise unique.
Before Ward, Gorka received another $5,000 for speaking fees from then-Senate candidate Danny Tarkanian. That Nevada Republican would later drop his challenge against Sen. Dean Heller, R-Nev., to run for an open House seat — this time with President Trump’s endorsement.
More recently, Gorka has been in talks with New Jersey congressional candidate John McCann to join the campaign as a foreign policy consultant. Two aides told the Washington Examiner in April that price negotiations were ongoing.
Still, Gorka is worth the money. Not only is he wildly popular with voters who watch him on Fox News, he is still in the presidential orbit. According to a Daily Beast report, Trump dined with Gorka at the White House in March, and Trump said he “missed” having Gorka around the West Wing. For non-traditional candidates like Ward and Tarkanian, getting the nod from Gorka is almost like getting a thumbs up from Trump.
Perhaps afraid of giving away his business plan, Gorka doesn’t want to talk about his latest money-making arrangement. When asked about the payments, he questioned the journalistic integrity of this reporter before offering some unsolicited fashion advice over email: “Are you still wearing shirts with collars that are too big for you and generally acting creepily?”
