Tensions could boil over at RNC as Trump 'drains resources' from the party: reporter

Journalist Marc Caputo told The New Republic's Greg Sargent on his podcast this week that Trump's takeover of the Republican National Committee could cause friction if he uses it to pay his legal bills at the expense of down-ballot races in the 2024 election cycle.

In particular, Caputo said the prospects of a worsening legal landscape for Trump could have a cascading effect on party finances.

"There's concern that that could happen and this could drain party resources," said Caputo.

"You think?" Sargent replied jokingly.

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"Four criminal cases is a lot," he said. "And the number of witnesses in the January 6th case and the documents case, that's just time consuming... when you talk about lawyers, time is money."

Sargent then quoted a passage from one of Caputo's most recent reports in which he said that Trump was displeased that the RNC under McDaniel had remained an "independent body" that wasn't wholly dedicated to defending and promoting him.

He then asked if this dynamic would make it harder for RNC members to raise objections to spending plans by Trump if they thought those plans would be bad for the party as a whole, and Caputo confirmed that it would.

"Republicans, by and large, are very scared of bucking Donald Trump and/or his voters," he said. "If you're a politician and you want to get reelected, you don't want to get crosswise with your voters. And those who do usually end up losing."

Listen to the whole podcast at this link.