A rival billionaire Republican casino magnate who had given money to Marco Rubio pledged to support Donald Trump Thursday.
Sheldon Adelson is the controversial owner of the Venetian and the Las Vegas Review-Journal and a high roller in Republican primary politics. He made the comments while at a gala dinner for the Jewish organization World Values Network. Adelson made clear that he’d back Trump in November, though his endorsement was not yet full throated.
“Yes, I’m a Republican. He’s a Republican. He’s our nominee. Whoever the nominee would turn out to be, any one of the 17. He was one of the 17. He won fair and square,” Adelson said, according to the New York Times.
Trump had attacked the significantly more wealthy Adelson in the past (with $28 billion to Trump’s approximately $3 billion), after a significant Rubio donation, but he has also privately sought out his support. Adelson admitted the two have met and that he found Trump “very charming” and thought he “will be good for Israel.”
Trump may court Adelson and other GOP big money donors more assiduously going forward. Though he promised to “self-finance” his primary run, he’s made no such pledge for the general election and even hinted that he may need a larger war chest to beat the Democrats’ likely nominee Hillary Clinton.
