President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to run the Small Business Administration gave millions to support his presidential campaign — including a newly disclosed $1 million donation just weeks before the election.
Linda McMahon, the former CEO of World Wrestling Entertainment, made the $1 million donation to a super PAC funded by the Ricketts family and casino billionaire Sheldon Adelson in early October, according to filings with the Federal Election Commission late Thursday.
The super PAC, Future 45, was revitalized as a pro-Trump committee in early fall by the Ricketts, who earlier in the election support anti-Trump efforts, and by Adelson, who sat out the Republican primary.
One of the Ricketts siblings, Cubs co-owner Todd Ricketts, has been named by Trump as deputy commerce secretary.
McMahon’s most recent donation brings her total contributions to pro-Trump super PACs this election to $7 million, making her one of the largest contributors in support of Trump. She had previously given $6 million in August and September to Rebuilding America Now, another super PAC that supported Trump’s campaign.
Super PACs are a type of campaign committee that are allowed to raise unlimited sums of money from Americans for political purposes, provided they do not directly coordinate with official candidate campaigns.
The WWE co-founder was named this week to serve as the chief of the SBA. She started the pro wrestling franchise with her husband, Vince McMahon, but stepped down from her role in the company in 2009.
She ran unsuccessfully for Senate twice in Connecticut, in 2010 and 2012.
It is not uncommon for presidents to reward top donors with plum posts in the administration, especially ambassadorships.
Current Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker is a billionaire businesswoman who was a major backer of President Barack Obama, serving as finance chairwoman for his 2008 campaign
Trump has drawn heavily from the billionaire and millionaire class for his Cabinet. In addition to McMahon and Ricketts, Trump has tapped his finance chairman and millionaire Steven Mnuchin as treasury secretary, billionaire investor and donor Wilbur Ross for commerce secretary, billionaire and GOP donor Besty DeVos as education secretary and millionaire fast food CEO Andrew Puzder as labor secretary.
