Trump-aligned super PAC paid Melania Trump $155K in 2021

A since-shuttered super PAC that was aligned with former President Donald Trump made a $155,000 payment to former first lady Melania Trump in 2021, according to a new expenditure filing.

The filing, which was first reported by The New York Times, showed that Make America Great Again, Again made the payment in December 2021 for a speaking engagement. The timing of the payment aligns with that of a fundraiser the former president held at his Mar-a-Lago estate.

The Times reported that the group’s initial federal filings did not disclose that the payment was to the former first lady, and instead listed the expenses as being associated with “Designer’s Management Agency,” which lists Melania Trump as a client.

The Trump campaign did not respond to a request for comment on the payment to the former president’s wife, who has largely remained out of the public eye since Trump launched his 2024 election bid last November.

Make America Great Again, Again was originally set up as the primary super PAC aligned with the former president after he left office. The group folded and in 2022 transferred nearly $10 million to Make America Great Again Inc., which is now the main super PAC affiliated with Trump’s 2024 bid.

Save America, a political committee formed in the aftermath of the 2020 election, previously paid Melania Trump’s stylist thousands of dollars in 2022. The group was created for contributions from supporters who backed Trump’s claims of election fraud. Those election challenges failed in court.

Ethical questions about Trump and whether his family benefited financially from his time in office or his political operation have persisted for years. The former president made frequent trips to Trump-owned properties while he was president, and he and other GOP candidates have hosted frequent fundraisers at his Mar-a-Lago or Bedminster properties in recent years.