If Michael Whatley becomes the next chair of the Republican National Committee (RNC), the GOP governing body’s legal spending could increase, based on his track record.
Whatley, the North Carolina Republican Party chairman and general counsel of the RNC, was endorsed by former President Donald Trump on Tuesday to lead the organization amid reports that Ronna McDaniel may step down from the position.
Whatley “has done a great job in his home state of North Carolina,” Trump said in a statement. If he becomes leader of the RNC, he may increase its spending on legal fees, given the way he leads the North Carolina Republican Party.
Photo by ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images
Newsweek reached out to representatives for Whatley by email for comment.
Speaking at a Conservative Political Action Conference in 2021, Whatley outlined his use of law firms in North Carolina.
“Our legal budget was three-quarters of our operating annual budget,” he said, while discussing the Democrats’ challenges to elections in the state. He added: “It is worth every penny.”
“This is going to have to be part of the Republican establishment going forward,” he said, and called on the wider RNC to amp up its legal resources to fight elections.
“‘You can’t tell me in 100 NC counties they couldn’t have come up with 4 votes if I didn’t have lawyers and attorneys…This is gonna have to be part of the Republican establishment going forward…This is going to be lawsuit after lawsuit after lawsuit.”
– Michael Whatley @CPAC pic.twitter.com/DXIKIJnDvv— Howard Mortman (@HowardMortman) February 13, 2024
According to an analysis of data filed to to the Federal Election Commission (FEC), the RNC spent $9,477,16.53 in 2023.
Christopher Phelps, a professor of modern American history at the University of Nottingham, told Newsweek there may be more lawsuits under Whatley if he becomes chair of the RNC.
“Whatley was an election denier, based on Trump’s disproven claims of fraud in 2020, and loyalty on that point is what matters most to Trump in supporting him for RNC chair,” he said. “That Whatley is a lawyer with a penchant for legal spending probably means we’ll see more baseless lawsuits—Trump’s campaign lost many dozens after the 2020 election—that seek to pursue such claims.”
FEC filings from Trump’s Save America PAC, analyzed by the Associated Press in October, found that it paid just under $37 million to law firms and attorneys since January 2022, accounting for more than half its total expenditures over the period.
Speculation about the future of the RNC comes after The New York Times last week cited anonymous sources who said McDaniel told the former president she would step down after the South Carolina primary this month amid mounting criticism about her performance. McDaniel has not confirmed that she is stepping down.
The GOP governing body has reported lower bank balances over the last few years, according to disclosures with the FEC. With $9.96 million in spending money, the RNC had less than half the $21.35 million it reported in the year Trump won the presidential election. The RNC had $63.23 million in its war chest in November 2019.
By contrast, the Democratic National Committee reported having $20.5 million available heading into the 2024 election year.
“Nothing has changed. This will be decided after South Carolina,” RNC spokesperson Keith Schipper told Newsweek last week.
Aside from Whatley, Trump also said his daughter-in-law, Lara Trump, “has agreed to run as the RNC co-chair.” Lara Trump, who is married to Trump’s son, Eric, was a senior adviser to the Trump campaign in 2020.
“Lara is an extremely talented communicator and is dedicated to all that MAGA stands for,” Trump said in his statement. “She has told me she wants to accept this challenge and would be GREAT!”
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