Trump PAC’s $650,000 Contribution to Smithsonian Supports Donald and Melania Portraits

• Save America, one of Donald Trump’s political committees, donated $650,000 to the Smithsonian.
• A Smithsonian official confirmed that the money will go toward supporting portraits of Donald and Melania Trump.
• The donation will cover “artists’ fees, shipping, framing, installation and arrangements.”

A $650,000 “philanthropic contribution” from former President Donald Trump’s political action committee to the Smithsonian Institution will fund the National Portrait Gallery of portraits of Donald and Melania Trump, a Smithsonian official confirmed to Insider.

The contribution, which Trump’s Save America PAC described in a statement filed Saturday by the Federal Election Commission without explanation, “supports the artists’ fees, shipping, installation, installation and events,” Smithsonian spokeswoman Linda St. Thomas said.

St. Thomas “Two painters are given, one for each portrait. The names will be close to the revelation of the paintings.” “The creation of the artwork is ongoing. The artwork’s unveiling date has yet to be determined.”

Save America PAC’s $650,000 donation to the National Portrait Gallery came as a wire transfer on July 14, St. Thomas said.

She added that “one more private donation” — she did not specify the amount or source, other than to say it was “family” — is also funding the portraits.

“We can’t give a donor’s name without telling them first, so that’s on hold,” she says.

“All portraits of presidents in the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery are paid for by private funds raised by the museum,” St. Thomas said.

Representatives for Trump did not respond to requests for comment.

Save America PAC — Trump’s main post-presidential political committee — reported more than $99 million in cash on hand as of July 31.

Save America launched an email and text fundraiser shortly after Trump left the White House, with hundreds of thousands of Trump supporters contributing tens of millions of dollars.

Sometimes the tone of fundraising messages is aggressive and misleading, and recent text messages suggest problems with recipients. Electoral registrations – and they have to click the link and take action.

Just Monday afternoon, Trump used trucker hats emblazoned with the American flag and “Let’s Go Brandon” — a slur against President Joe Biden — on Save America.

“These new Let’s Go Brandon hats are designed by yours truly, and I want my best veterans to have them,” Trump wrote.

And the PAC cash pile coincides with Trump openly flirting with another run for the White House in 2024, even as he faces significant legal risks at the federal, state and local levels.

Presidential portraits

The National Portrait Gallery in Washington, DC displays official portraits of all former presidents. Currently, an unofficial portrait of Trump from photographer Parry Dukovich appears in the gallery’s online gallery.

The portraits of former President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama — popular attractions in their first year on display — were funded by $500,000 from private donors, Time magazine reported in 2018.

The Smithsonian lists several individuals, foundations, and trusts that have funded Obama portraits, including film director Steven Spielberg and actress Kate Capshaw. Obama’s portraits are currently on a national tour.

Over the years, Trump has had a curious relationship with murals featuring his likeness.

In the year In 2007, Trump bought a 6-foot-tall portrait of himself at auction — and paid $20,000 from his then-philanthropic foundation, which Trump himself did not primarily fund, according to the Washington Post.

In the year As of 2017, Trump has graced the covers of Time magazine since 2009, featuring several of his golf clubs. But as David Fahrenthold of the Washington Post pointed out at the time, the covers were fake.