The Scoop
Some of the largest donors to Kamala Harris and to progressive causes worry they could face investigations and retaliation from the Trump Administration next year — and are preparing for the possibility.
At least one of the groups receiving LinkedIn Co-founder Reid Hoffman’s vast contributions has consulted lawyers about the possibility of an investigation, a person close to the group said.
And leaders of progressive nonprofit organizations were brought togetherThursday at the East 62nd Street mansion that houses the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation by that group’s leader, Elizabeth Alexander, and the president of the JPB Foundation, Deepak Bhargava.
One focus was how to present a common front in the face of politicized investigations, a person briefed on the gathering said.
An attendee, Ford Foundation president Darren Walker, declined to comment on the gathering and said he was “focused on helping our grantee organizations figure out how to navigate a changing landscape.”
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Trump has made threats against some 100 enemies, according to a diligent NPR catalog, and thrown around phrases like “enemy from within.” Some of his allies have been even more explicit about using the Department of Justice to attack political foes. Republicans have also at times said those threats were mere jokes or hyperbole. The president-elect appears at the moment to be in a forgiving mood, suggesting the Republican Party should help the Democratic presidential campaign pay off its debt.
Progressive leaders are split on the seriousness of the short-term legal threat. Some are skeptical that Trump would use the federal apparatus to attack Democratic donors and progressive nonprofits that veer toward electoral politics — in part because a move like that would also alarm Republican donors and non-profits.
Others are closer to outright panic. Hoffman’s former chief political aide, Dimitri Mehlhorn, after the election declared the “Second American Republic…over” and wrote that he would be “joining what I call the Archipelago of Light” which he described as a “global civilization” stretching from “Finland to Costa Rica.”
Hoffman, among the Democratic Party’s topmost donors this cycle, said on a podcast after the election that “There were a number of folks I talked to who were like, ’Trump’s rhetoric on the campaign trail is extreme because that’s the way he gets his news and attention. It isn’t really going to be the way he’s going to govern… It isn’t going to be retribution to so-called enemies within.”
“Obviously, I feared and still fear they were wrong, but now I’m hoping they are right,” he said.
A Trump adviser responded that Hoffman is “trying to scare people into handing over even more money to his liberal political groups.”
The Mellon and JPB Foundations, and Hoffman, didn’t respond to inquiries Saturday.
- Kadia Goba and Reed Albergotti contributed to this article.
Ben’s view
Predicting which of Trump’s pronouncements will be translated into action is a fool’s game. But his campaign-trail threats have a deterrent effect, whether or not he acts on them.
Business leaders last week raced to post praise of the newly-elected Trump. Big media companies, navigating complex corporate waters and aiming for mergers that require federal approval, have dialed back their confrontational tone. And some progressive donors and non-profits, too, may think twice before crossing the new president.
Room for Disagreement
A Trump legal ally, Mark Paleotta, wrote on X Thursday that — contrary to recent tradition — the president “can intervene to direct DOJ on specific cases.” He added that “President Trump will not use the DOJ for political purposes, that is to go after individuals simply because they are political opponents. But just because you are a political opponent does not give you get a free pass if you have violated the law.”
Notable
- Politico senior legal affairs reporter Josh Gerstein explored the possibility of retribution against political foes, prosecutors and judges, and other critics: “He won’t be inhibited by the need to run for reelection. He will be emboldened by a Supreme Court ruling that grants presidents broad immunity from criminal accountability after they leave office. And he is expected to be surrounded by aides more willing to dispense with norms to carry out his wishes.”
- A grandson of Andrew W. Mellon, Timothy, was Trump’s biggest donor, even as the foundation in the financier’s name is a major progressive force.