President Trump on Friday made a surprise appearance at a fundraiser for a dog rescue organization with which his daughter-in-law, Lara Trump, is involved.
The former president popped by the event at his private Mar-a-Lago club and delivered an impromptu speech at the Big Dog Ranch Rescue event, “which aimed to raise $500,000 to bring 500 dogs from China to the U.S., the group’s founder and president told a local NBC affiliate,” The Hill reported.
“I’m with you 100 percent. We had many meetings in the White House and the Oval Office having to do with saving and helping dogs!” said Trump, who was wearing a “Make America Great Again” hat.
President Trump makes surprise appearance at animal rescue fundraiser. More at https://t.co/j4AOiStqCD@bdrr pic.twitter.com/J4yai8cAbU
— T.A. Walker (@timallanwalker) March 12, 2021
Trump also teased a run by his daughter-in-law for a U.S. Senate seat in North Carolina. Lara Trump is reportedly mulling a bid to seek the seat of retiring Republican Sen. Richard Burr in 2022.
“I don’t know. You’re running for the Senate. I hear she’s going to run for the Senate,” Trump told attendees, who cheered.
Trump told the group he didn’t plan on stopping by. “So, I didn’t exactly prepare for this,” Trump said. “[But I was] walking by, and I hear everyone screaming, and I was like, ‘What’s going on?’ and it was like, ‘We’re going to help dogs,’ and that’s OK with me.”
The group is seeking to launch a rescue mission to remove over 500 dogs from China by cargo plane to remove them from meat markets.
Chase Scott, the spokesman for Big Dog Ranch Rescue, said “President Trump visited the event and thanked those attending for their support in helping Big Dog Ranch Rescue save 47,000 dogs to date. The crowd responded with a standing ovation for President Trump, Lara Trump, and Laurie Simmons for the work they did to pass the first national anti-cruelty bill to protect animals.” Simmons is the president and founder of the group.
Trump had a busy week, releasing several statements from his Save America political action committee (PAC).
“No more money for RINOS,” Trump said in a statement released Monday, referring to Republicans In Name Only. “They do nothing but hurt the Republican Party and our great voting base — they will never lead us to Greatness.”
Trump’s targeting of “RINOs” also follows his attempt to explain what happened in two runoff races in Georgia. Republicans had to win both Senate races on Jan. 3 to keep control of the chamber but instead lost them both.
“To set the record straight, there were two reasons the Senate races were lost in Georgia,” Trump said in a statement on Thursday. “First, Republicans did not turn out to vote because they were so angry and disappointed with Georgia Republican leadership and Governor [Brian] Kemp for failing to stand up to Stacey Abrams,” he said, going on to slam the state’s Consent Decree, which he has blasted in the past.
Trump’s comments followed reports that his lawyers had sent out cease-and-desist letters to three fundraising entities for the Republican Party — the Republican National Committee (RNC), the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC), and the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC), according to Politico.