Casino billionaire Phil Ruffin donates $2 million to Donald Trump's 2024 campaign
Phil Ruffin is the first Las Vegas casino billionaire to spend his deep pockets supporting Donald Trump's 2024 presidential campaign.
Ruffin owns 50% of the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas and also owns Treasure Island and Circus Circus on the Las Vegas Strip. The 88-year-old is a longtime friend of the former president, himself a billionaire who owned casinos in Atlantic City and Indiana.
Trump has relied heavily on the Las Vegas casino mogul in three presidential elections since 2016.
The biggest "buy" in town is Dr.. Miriam Adelson, the widow of Sheldon Adelson, who founded and ran Las Vegas Sands until his death in January 2021. The Adelson family donated more than $200 million to Republican candidates during the 2016 and 2020 presidential election cycles.
Although Dr. As Adelson waits for Republican votes to open up her political war chest before the vote is decided, Ruffin has placed another big bet on Trump.
$2 million payment to Trump PAC
Recent campaign fundraising reports from the Federal Election Commission show that Ruffin, who is worth an estimated $2.7 billion, according to Forbes, donated $1 million to Make America Great Again in April. In June, he made a second $1 million donation to a political action committee (PAC).
Make America Great Again Inc., or MAGA Inc., is Trump's main super PAC supporting his 2024 campaign. As a super PAC, the committee can raise and spend unlimited amounts of money to help put Trump in the White House.
Ruffin's funding for Trump's 2024 campaign is nearly double the financial support he provided for his friend's 2020 election. Ruffin donated more than $1 million to Trump's political action committee during Trump's loss to Joe Biden.
Political experts say Trump may need more campaign cash in 2024 to bolster his legal defense against four criminal charges and keep his name on state ballots. In addition to his wealthy friends, Trump's extended family also donates to political action committees.
Charles Kushner, the father of Trump son-in-law Jared Kushner, donated $1 million to MAGA Inc. in June. The elder Kushner received a presidential pardon from Trump in December 2020. That was a reference to his 2005 guilty plea to illegal campaign contributions, tax evasion and witness tampering. Kushner served 14 months in federal prison and was released in 2006.
Several other billionaires own or have owned Las Vegas casinos, including Station Casino brothers Frank III and Lorenzo Fertitta, their distant cousin Tilman Fertitta and Wynn Resorts Founder Steve Wynn may join Trump's support next year, as he did last year. 2016 and 2020.
Latest Odds
With just 311 days left until the November 2024 presidential election, Trump is the favorite among PredictIt political bettors.
Shares of Trump's Nov. 5 election victory were trading at 40 cents on peer-to-peer betting exchanges. Biden was second with 38 cents.
Nikki Haley, the 29th U.S. ambassador to the United Nations and former South Carolina governor, ranked third with a share price of 12 cents. Last month, Haley received financial backing from the Koch Network, one of the wealthiest families in the United States with a net worth of approximately $120 billion.
No sportsbook in the United States is legally allowed to accept traditional bets on political outcomes. But foreign bookmakers have been doing this for a long time.
Trump is the most popular candidate in 2024 at +120. Biden has an approval rating of +200 and Haley has an approval rating of +600. California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom has an approval rating of +1,000, former first lady Michelle Obama has an approval rating of +2,800, and Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSanti has an approval rating of +1,000. Ron DeSantis - once the Republican frontrunner - is now a long-term underdog at +4000.
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Source: www.casino.org
