$1M+ Taxpayer Dollars Subsidized Trump Rally In Nassau, Lawmakers Allege In Complaint

MINEOLA, NY — Nassau County Democratic legislators on Thursday said they filed a federal complaint alleging a "million dollar backroom deal" between County Executive Bruce Blakeman and Donald Trump's campaign in connection with his rally at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum.

They called for an investigation by the Federal Election Commission, alleging over $1 million in taxpayers' funds were "funneled" to subsidize the Wednesday night event, and called on Trump's campaign to reimburse the county for expenses related to security and police overtime.

The lawmakers, Democratic Minority Leader Delia DeRiggi-Whitton, along with legislators Seth Koslow and Debra Mulé, said the action amounts to "an illegal, unreported in-kind campaign" contribution to the Trump campaign and the Nassau County Republican Committee.

At a press conference in Mineola, DeRiggi-Whitton described it as a "backroom deal" between Blakeman and the Trump campaign.

The complaint claims hundreds of Nassau police officers, along with helicopters, firefighters, and other municipal services, were deployed to the Trump rally without any reimbursement or reporting to the Federal Election Commission, which constitutes a violation of federal campaign finance laws and undermines the integrity of the electoral process, according to DeRiggi-Whitton.

The lawmakers' complaint alleges substantial municipal resources, the county's "entire" 2,400-officer police force was deployed for security, and two helicopters.

De-Riggi-Whitton touched on how the New York Times reported that there was a "high-dollar fundraiser" going on at the event on the sidelines. An invitation obtained by the news outlet detailed ticket prices, including $5,000 for reserved rally seating, $30,000 for a photo with Donald Trump, and a $250,000 V.I.P. Experience, according to the lawmakers' complaint.

"The substantial deployment of Nassau County resources for a clearly partisan political event constitutes an illegal in-kind contribution under federal campaign finance law," the complaint states. "An in-kind contribution, which includes goods or services provided to a campaign without charge or at less than market value, must be reported and properly accounted for under the law."

"The deployment of Nassau County police and other municipal employees, along with helicopters, and other services for this rally, without any reimbursement or reporting, violates these provisions," it continued.

The coordination between Blakeman and the Nassau GOP highlighted "the political nature" of the event, according to the complaint.

"The Nassau County Republican Committee directly benefited from Mr. Trump's appearance, as the rally was paired with a high-dollar fundraiser that generated millions of dollars for the local party," the complaint states. "The unreported contribution of Nassau County municipal resources effectively subsidized a private political fundraiser.

The case "exemplifies a quid pro quo exchange" between Trump and Blakeman, with Blakeman inviting Trump to Nassau to energize Republican voters and bolster fundraising for the Nassau County GOP, as evidenced by Joseph G. Cairo Jr.'s fundraiser, the complaint states.

"In return, Blakeman unlawfully provided municipal resources — resources that were paid for by Nassau County taxpayers — to secure and support the rally," according to the complaint.

The circumstances surrounding the rally should be investigated, DeRiggi-Whitton said.
"Nobody is above the law, not Donald Trump, not Bruce Blakeman," she added.

Koslow said the county deployed a small army at the expense of the taxpayers and likened it to "corruption."

Blakeman's office did not respond to several requests for comment.

In a Facebook post, Blakeman tagged Trump, and called the three lawmakers' claims "disgraceful."

"Democrat leaders are inflammatory and irresponsible in condemning Nassau County for protecting President Donald J. Trump," he wrote. "They are the defund the police squad and defund democracy protection squad. Disgraceful and UnAmerican!"

In a press conference Tuesday, Blakeman was asked by reporters about the cost of the event and he said that it was "Team Trump" that is paying for the venue and to "run the show. They're paying for all of those items that they need to run a show, as anybody would run a show, and the rally is like a production. So that will be Team Trump. They're paying for that."

With respect to the police assets, Blakeman said, "Well, we do this all the time."

He noted that two weeks ago, the county provided security for the Dalai Lama, and on this coming Sunday it will be the Prime Minister of India.

"We do it for our concerts," he said. "We do it for all kinds of dignitaries."

Other dignitaries include Nancy Pelosi, Sen. Chuck Schumer, and Speaker Mike Johnson.

"That's part of our job as a government entity, to provide safety and public order and law and order, and we encourage big events in Nassau County, like we had with the World Cup, which was a monumental event from a security standpoint.

Mulé mentioned previous claims by Blakeman comparing security for Trump's event to other events, saying that for the Cricket World Cup, the International Cricket Council reimbursed the county $100,000 for each match, totaling around $800,000 for the "county's coffers," she said.

"Don't be fooled by the attempt to make comparisons," she added.

A spokesman for the FEC's press office told Patch, "Due to confidentiality requirements, we are unable to provide information regarding potential complaints that may be filed with the agency until those matters are resolved and closed."

Patch has reached out to Trump's camp for a response to the accusations.

In his own post, unrelated to Blakeman's, Trump thanked "New York" under the hashtag, MAGA2024.

Trump's campaign has been asked to chip in for security at other venues across the U.S., according to multiple news outlets.

An attorney with the Campaign Legal Center based in Washington, D.C., told Newsday that federal campaign finance laws allow a local government to send additional police officers to a campaign even "solely to ensure the safety of attendees — consistent with how it would respond to any non-campaign event."

"Conversely, if government employees are providing any additional campaign services beyond security, such as helping to set up the event or driving supporters to the event to increase attendance, then the costs for those employees’ services would be a ‘contribution’ that would have to be reimbursed by the campaign to avoid violating the relevant contribution limits and prohibitions set forth in federal campaign finance laws,” she told the outlet.

Nassau Republican Committee Chairman Joseph Cairo told the outlet that complaint was "baseless and sloppily prepared" and said the lawmakers "erroneously contended" the committee financially benefited from a fundraiser associated with the rally.