(Newser)
–
If Donald Trump officially decides to enter the Republican race, he'll probably have to explain why he has donated to so many Democrats. Of the more than $1.3 million in political donations he's made over the years, 54% has gone to Democrats, the Washington Post reports. Those include such big names as Harry Reid, Rahm Emanuel, Hillary Clinton, John Kerry, Charles Schumer, and Ted Kennedy. Of course, many of Trump's contributions have been in states where he has significant real estate interests.
In a recent Fox News interview, Trump explained that New York is overwhelmingly Democratic; the Post notes that more than two-thirds of his donations in the state have gone to Dems. “So what am I going to do—contribute to Republicans? One thing: I’m not stupid. Am I going to contribute to Republicans for my whole life when they get heat when they run against some Democrat and the most they can get is 1% of the vote?” Even though he has also given more than $600,000 to Republicans, "it will be hard for him to spin his way out of" the Democratic contributions, says a GOP consultant. (Click to read Trump's thoughts on how intelligent Obama is—or isn't.)
