Trump donors are supplying more than just millions of dollars for his presidential campaign. Plus, one of America’s top-selling vehicles gets a major recall. These stories and more highlight The Rundown for July 31, 2023.
Trump fundraising PAC spent more than $40 million on legal fees
Donald Trump’s legal fees are stacking up and his donors are stepping in with funds. The former president is facing two different criminal cases with more indictments potentially coming out of Georgia this week. Since the start of this year, Trump donors have already spent $40 million on his legal fees.
The Washington Post was first to report that Trump’s Political Action Committee and Save America has fronted a large portion of the former president’s legal defense. Due to the large amount of legal costs, Trump’s team is reportedly creating a separate legal defense fund to off-set future expenses.
The $40 million has gone towards defending not just Trump but members of his inner circle who are also tied up in various investigations related to the former president. Monday, July 31, a Mar-a-Lago worker, who was named last week in the classified documents case, has his first court appearance in Miami, Florida.
Trump maintains dominant lead in GOP primary polling
Despite the legal battles, Trump still maintains a dominant lead over his GOP rivals in the race for the Republican presidential nomination. That’s according to the first New York Times poll of the 2024 campaign.
According to the poll, Trump is still pulling in the majority of Republican support at 54%.
Florida governor Ron Desantis is at 17%. No one else is polling at more than 3%.
We are now just over three weeks out from the first Republican presidential debate.
As of this weekend, six of the seven candidates have qualified. Former Vice President Mike Pence has not.
44 people dead by suicide bomb at Pakistan political rally
Forty-four people died and nearly 200 others were injured after a suicide bomber targeted a political event in Pakistan. It was a convention organized by an Islamist Party. Explosives were detonated near the convention’s stage according to local police. There have been no groups claiming responsibility for the attack, but a local branch of ISIS operating just across the border in Afghanistan has a history of similar attacks in the region.
Ford recalling 870,000 top-selling F-150 trucks
Ford has announced a major recall of its top selling F-150. The recall is for more than 870,000 pickup trucks from model years 2021 through 2023. Ford says there is an issue with the electronic parking brake that can activate while driving. There have been no reported accidents or injuries related to the issue.
Ford’s F-series trucks have been the top-selling vehicles in the U.S. for decades.
X Light at former Twitter HQ prompts investigation
A giant, glowing X was placed on top of the San Francisco headquarters of the company formerly known as Twitter on July 28. The X logo seems to be a nuisance for neighbors who have posted videos online showing its bright light shining into nearby apartment buildings.
San Francisco’s Department of Building Inspections has opened an investigation into the X structure.
CEO Elon Musk has said he plans to keep the company’s headquarters in its San Francisco location.
August will see rare blue moon
It may be the final day of July, but astronomy fans are looking forward to something that will be shining bright on August 1. That night will see the first of two supermoons of the month.
A supermoon occurs when the moon’s orbit is closest to earth at the same time the moon is full.
Supermoons are roughly 16% brighter than your average moon. August 30th will see the second supermoon. This one will be even closer and is known as a blue moon. The name has nothing to do with color but refers to the second full moon in any month. It’s a rare occurrence, happening once every three years, hence the phrase “once in a blue moon.” The next one won’t be until 2026.
