September 2, 2021/Media, Press

GOP Primary Gets Messy As Outside Group Funnels Millions To Support Trump-Endorsed Candidate

Amid reports  from the News & Observer that Club for Growth is spending $3 million on a television ad blitz touting Congressman Ted Budd’s Trump endorsement, it’s clear the GOP is in for a long and messy primary. 

The announcement comes after a Washington Post story highlighting Budd’s family ties to a company that cost farmers millions sparked infighting among the primary rivals. Club For Growth “announced his group had raised more than $5 million — and planned to raise more — to support Budd’s Senate run.”

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News & Observer: Outside group spending big to tell NC voters that Trump endorsed Budd in Senate race

  • Now one of Budd’s biggest political backers is spending $3 million to make sure Republicans in the state are aware of Trump’s endorsement.
  • The 30-second ad uses audio from Trump’s surprise endorsement at the Republican state convention in June, where the former president announced his choice at the top of his speech and made veiled, disparaging remarks about former Gov. Pat McCrory, another top candidate in the race. Former U.S. Rep. Mark Walker, another Republican running for Senate, was also in the audience.
  • The ad and its focus on Trump’s endorsement comes after The Washington Post published a story about Budd and his family’s role in a bankruptcy that cost farmers millions. Budd declined to comment to The Post, but said in a local television interview this week that the company AgriBioTech, run by his father, had nothing to do with him.
  • McCrory and Walker were deeply critical of Budd.
  • “North Carolinians deserve for him to tell the truth about his direct involvement in fraud, lawsuits, bankruptcies, and farmers losing millions. Do we really need another Washington politician like this representing North Carolina in the United States Senate?” McCrory said in a statement.
  • Said Walker in a statement: “The report around Ted Budd’s agriculture business bankruptcy and allegations of defrauding farmers is unsettling but confirms the Budd record: follow big money and you always find Ted Budd.”

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