Dog rescue charity linked to Lara Trump spent $2m on Trump properties since 2014

A dog rescue charity with links to Lara Trump, daughter-in-law of the former US president, has spent around $2 million on Trump properties over the last seven years, reported US media.

Since the January 6 attacks on the Capitol by his supporters, companies and groups have consciously distanced themselves from Donald Trump.

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However, the Big Dog Ranch Rescue, based in Florida, will reportedly spend $225,000 at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago country club for an event this weekend, according to a permit filed with the town of Palm Beach, reported by HuffPost.

According to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) filings, the charity has spent as much as $1,883,160 on fundraising costs for events at Mar-a-Lago and a nearby Trump golf course since 2014.

Meanwhile, Lara Trump, who is married to Eric Trump, has been a chairwoman for these charity events since 2018.

Following his White House exit in January Trump has been living in the club full time.

Donald Trump’s ‘Trump Foundation’, which was dissolved in 2019, and Eric Trump’s ‘Eric Trump Foundation’ have been known to use money from donors for events and other expenses at Trump properties.

Donald Trump admitted in court documents that he used charity money to buy a portrait of himself.

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Lauren Simmons, president and founder of Big Dog Ranch Rescue, is an ardent Trump supporter, and posted many comments on social media in support of the former president’s baseless “Stop the Steal” campaign to overturn the results of the 2020 election.

In a Facebook post from 4 January, two days before the deadly insurrection at the US Capitol, Simmons posted an image on Facebook which said: “Either we TAKE power back, or we will never be free again”.