New Fundraising Report Reveals Trump PAC Paid Eye-Popping Amount to Melania’s Stylist for ‘Strategy Consulting’

By Sarah RumpfJul 31st, 2023, 10:06 pm
 
Donald and Melania Trump at Jan. 20, 2017 Inaugural ball

AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File

The latest round of FEC disclosures showed that Save America PAC, the leadership PAC supporting former President Donald Trump’s campaign, continued to burn through tens of millions of dollars on his legal fees for his various indictments and other entanglements with the judicial system, but that wasn’t the only eye-popping number in the reports.

The PAC also paid over $108,000 for “strategy consulting” to Hervé Pierre Braillard for the first six months of 2023.

That number might not seem all that odd for a presidential campaign — especially in comparison to Trump’s former campaign manager Brad Parscale, who was ousted from his perch after a series of revealing reports about how he was handsomely profiting from the campaign — but Braillard isn’t a political consultant.

He’s a French-American fashion designer, and has also been Melania Trump’s stylist for years, designing the gown she wore to her husband’s inaugural ball in Jan. 2017 (pictured above) under his eponymous label, Hervé Pierre. Braillard previously designed inaugural gowns for other First Ladies, including Hillary Clinton when he was with Oscar de la Renta, and Laura Bush and Michelle Obama when he was at Caroline Herrera.

The line item on Save America’s operating expenditures showing the payment to Braillard was flagged on Twitter by Rob Pyers, who noted that the large payment was made despite the Trump “cash crunch” due to the whopping amount of legal fees.

This also is not the first time the PAC has cut a check to Braillard, or the first time it’s claimed the money was for “strategy consulting.”

According to Fox News, the PAC paid Braillard in 2022 “with eight installments of $18,000 and $6,000 labeled ‘Strategy Consulting,’ amounting to $132,000.”

In August 2022, Melania Trump’s office issued a statement regarding the payments to Braillard, saying, “Mr. Pierre is a world-renowned artist. His work extends to many different fields, not just fashion design. His expertise is utilized for special projects and events.”

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Sarah Rumpf - Contributing Editor

Sarah Rumpf joined Mediaite in 2020 and is a Contributing Editor focusing on politics, law, and the media. A native Floridian, Sarah attended the University of Florida, graduating with a double major in Political Science and German, and earned her Juris Doctor, cum laude, from the UF College of Law. Sarah's writing has been featured at National Review, The Daily Beast, Reason, Law & Crime, Independent Journal Review, Texas Monthly, The Capitolist, Breitbart Texas, Townhall, RedState, The Orlando Sentinel, and the Austin-American Statesman, and her political commentary has led to appearances on the BBC, MSNBC, NewsNation, Fox 35 Orlando, Fox 7 Austin, The Young Turks, The Dean Obeidallah Show, and other television, radio, and podcast programs across the globe.