InDepthNH.org (https://indepthnh.org/tag/donald-trump/page/5/)
President Trump raised $107 million for his inaugural festivities, shattering previous records. The former titleholder, Barack Obama, raised half that, $53.2 million, in 2009 — though Obama imposed far stricter limits on amounts and sources of donations.
In 2016, campaigns and PACs raised 32.2 percent of their funds — $1,564,345,434 — from donors giving $200 or less (the threshold at which campaigns must report the donor’s name, employer, and address to the FEC.)
Those wealthy enough to spend $200,000 for a club membership don’t have to try to schedule a meeting with Trump in Washington when they can bump into him at the winter White House and bend his ear for a moment or two.
To persuade payers and the public, the industry has deployed a potent new ally, a company whose marquee figures are leading economists and health care experts at the nation’s top universities.
The soon-to-be U.S. energy secretary doled out billions in grants and tax incentives for corporations while governor of Texas. One $30 million grant went to an energy group that turned out to be a phantom.