2020-10-22apnews.com

Other questionable expenditures by Trump and the RNC that are included in campaign finance disclosures:

-- Nearly $100,000 spent on copies of Donald Trump Jr.'s book "Triggered," which helped propel it to the top of the New York Times bestsellers list.

-- Over $7.4 million spent at Trump-branded properties since 2017.

-- At least $35.9 million spent on Trump merchandise.

-- $39 million in legal and "compliance" fees. In addition to tapping the RNC and his campaign to pay legal costs during his impeachment proceedings, Trump has also relied on his political operation to cover legal costs for some aides.

-- At least $15.1 million spent on the Republican National Convention. The event was supposed to be in Charlotte, North Carolina, but Trump relocated it to Jacksonville, Florida, after a dispute with North Carolina's Democratic governor over coronavirus safety measures. The Florida event was ultimately canceled, with a mostly online convention taking its place. Disclosures show the RNC still spent $1 million at the Ritz Carlton Amelia Island, near Jacksonville.

-- $912,000 spent on ads that ran on the personal Facebook pages of Parscale and Trump spokesperson Katrina Pierson.

-- A $250,000 ad run during Game 7 of the 2019 World Series, which came after Trump was booed by spectators when he attended Game 5.

-- At least $218,000 for Trump surrogates to travel aboard private jets provided by campaign donors.

-- $1.6 million on TV ads in the Washington, D.C., media market, an overwhelmingly Democratic area where Trump has little chance of winning but where he is a regular TV watcher.

There are signs Trump's grassroots fundraising operation has slowed, too. Once a driving force, the campaign is now spending about 77 cents for every dollar it raises, typically through online ads asking supporters to chip in a few dollars.



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