MAGA donors funnel millions to Democratic Party opponent of Jan. 6 cop: report
Wealthy MAGA donors are funneling millions of dollars to the campaign of a Democrat who’s running against former U.S. Capitol Police Officer Harry Dunn, a report revealed Saturday.
Dunn, who was beaten by rioters on Jan. 6, 2017, is outspoken about the insurrection, giving testimony on Capitol Hill and regularly appearing on MSNBC.
He’s running against state Sen. Sarah Elfreth, among others, for the Democratic nomination to represent Maryland’s third district in Congress. The state’s primary is on Tuesday.
But his opponent has received a multi-million dollar flood of donations from a surprising source — a right-wing super PAC that has raised tens of millions of dollars from donations from some of Trump’s biggest supporters.
The United Democracy Project is an arm of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. Salon reported that in March it spent $600,000 on a TV ad campaign boosting Elfreth’s support for abortion rights.
Describing itself as a group of “Democrats, Republicans and Independents” who support “America’s partnership with our democratic ally Israel,” Salon reported the group has now spent $4.2 million backing Elfreth — much more than the $1.4 million her own campaign has raised.
But, Salon reported, the ads paid for by the PAC don’t mention Israel.
“The super PAC tries in vain to bolster her liberal bonafides and notably never mentions Israel,” said another candidate, John Morse.
“That’s because the vast majority of Democrats favor a ceasefire. They’re doing this across the country to try to trick voters.”
Among the millionaires funding the campaign are Larry Mizel, who served as Trump 2016 fundraising campaign in Colorado, Salon reported.
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Real estate developer Robert Kargman has given Elfreth $5,500. He gave $25,000 to Trump’s 2020 campaign and backed the congressional campaign of far-right activist Laura Loomer.
Several other names are heavily involved in GOP politics.
Elfreth’s campaign manager, Pat Murray, told Salon, “We are disappointed that other candidates launched last minute negative attacks, but that’s a clear sign that they know Sarah is the frontrunner and in a strong position to win on Tuesday.”
But Dunn told Salon, a candidate receiving “dark money spending bankrolled by MAGA Republicans” is effectively backing right-wing Trumpian policies.
“Any candidate who receives this support [and] refuses to condemn their meddling in this race essentially accepts the endorsement of those who incited the rioters I fought on January 6th,” he said.