No Donation Limit for Inauguration Committee Contributions
A series of corporate donations aimed at winning the favor of President-elect Donald Trump is continuing. Microsoft (MS), Google, and Boeing have each announced they will donate $1 million (approximately 1.47 billion KRW) for the inauguration ceremony, CNBC reported on the 9th (local time).
On the same day, MS announced it would donate $1 million to Trump’s inauguration. This amount is more than the $500,000 donation for Trump’s first inauguration and the same amount as for President Joe Biden’s inauguration.
CNBC introduced a blog post from last week by Brad Smith, MS Vice Chairman, stating, “The United States needs a smart international strategy to quickly support American artificial intelligence (AI) worldwide,” and reported that MS hopes AI policies under the Trump administration will be promoted in a way favorable to the company.
Google also donated $1 million to Trump’s inauguration and plans to live stream the ceremony on YouTube.
Major IT companies and big tech giants such as Meta, Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, and Tim Cook, CEO of Apple, have either donated or pledged to donate $1 million to the Trump Inauguration Committee. CNBC reported, “Trump has had a rocky relationship with major tech companies for years,” and that tech company CEOs have expressed support for President-elect Trump and made considerable efforts to improve relations.
Aircraft manufacturer Boeing also donated $1 million to the inauguration support committee, the same amount as for Trump’s first inauguration. In a statement, Boeing said, “We are pleased to continue the bipartisan tradition of supporting the presidential inauguration committee.”
The U.S. president-elect may appoint an inauguration committee to organize and fundraise for inauguration celebrations after winning the election. There is no limit on the amount individuals, corporations, or labor organizations can donate to the inauguration committee.
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