The Republican attorney general of Florida reportedly solicited a donation from Donald Trump’s foundation as the office was considering joining a multi-state fraud lawsuit against the New York billionaire.
The Associated Press reported Monday that in 2013 Pam Bondi asked Trump for a donation to her reelection campaign “several weeks” before Bondi announced the state was considering joining a lawsuit against Trump University, the real estate seminar course currently being sued by former clients. The AG’s office had received several complaints from Trump University customers in Florida.
Four days after that announcement, however, Bondi’s campaign received a $25,000 check from a Trump foundation. Bondi ultimately did not join the New York-led Trump University lawsuit nor did she file a separate suit of her own.
Here’s more from the AP:
The money came from a Trump family foundation in apparent violation of rules surrounding political activities by charities. A political group backing Bondi’s re-election, called And Justice for All, reported receiving the check Sept. 17, 2013 — four days after Bondi’s office publicly announced she was considering joining a New York state probe of Trump University’s activities. After the check came in, Bondi’s office nixed suing Trump, citing insufficient grounds to proceed. Bondi declined repeated requests for an interview on Monday, referring all questions to Marc Reichelderfer, a political consultant who worked for her most re-election effort. Reichelderfer told AP that Bondi spoke with Trump “several weeks” before her office publicly announced it was deliberating whether to join a lawsuit proposed by New York’s Democratic attorney general. Reichelfelder said that Bondi was unaware of dozens of consumer complaints received by her office about Trump’s real-estate seminars at the time she requested the donation.
Bondi endorsed Trump for president the day before the Florida primary earlier this year.
