Donald Trump has made it clear from day one: He has no use for people telling him what to do.
The wealthy Republican presidential candidate has said repeatedly that he’s immune to donor pressure and won’t hire pollsters. Yet according to Trump’s July quarterly report, the real estate tycoon has not only spent campaign funds on pollsters but ranks among the top five GOP candidates in spending on polling.
Trump’s campaign paid $28,000 to Cole Hargrave Snodgrass and Associates, a polling firm out of Oklahoma City in mid-May, a month before Trump made his 2016 announcement at Trump Tower in New York. Sens. Ted Cruz, Rand Paul and Lindsey Graham and Florida Gov. Jeb Bush come next in their spending on polls.
The investment in polling is small in the context of the campaign’s overall budget, but it is inconsistent with Trump’s anti-pollster statements, coming most recently in a Sunday interview with “Meet The Press.”
“I don’t have pollsters. I don’t want to waste money on pollsters. I don’t want to be unreal. I want to be me. I have to be me,” Trump told host Chuck Todd. “You know, we have enough of that in Washington with pollsters telling everybody what to say and everybody being controlled by the special interests, and the lobbyists, et cetera, and the donors.”
Trump made similar comments to the New York Times in a July 20 piece, asking why the pollsters aren’t running for president themselves if they’re so good.
“I don’t want a pollster,” Trump told the Times. “Because if a pollster’s so good, why aren’t they running? I don’t need a pollster, I don’t want a pollster.”
Thus far, Cruz has spent the most ($131,338) on polling and research, with Paul the only other candidate putting forth more than $100,000 ($114,500). Meanwhile, Graham, who’s looking to make a play in his home state of South Carolina, has spent $69,000, with Bush spending nearly $50,000.
July quarterly numbers are not available for Scott Walker, John Kasich and Chris Christie, who all entered the race later on. Walker and Kasich both entered the race during July, while Christie announced on June 27.
