Sen. Ted Cruz's widely reported private meeting with Donald Trump in 2013 sought money for the Texas lawmaker's political action committee during his taxpayer-funded trip to New York, according to
The Daily Beast.
According to the website, Cruz was gearing up for a presidential bid when he scheduled the closed-door meeting a month after the government shutdown triggered by the failed effort to repeal Obamacare.
USA Today previously reported the $1,200 trip to Manhattan was one of several Cruz paid for out of his Senate budget, and a spokeswoman for Cruz told
Politico at the time the sit-down was a "friendly chat" scheduled during Cruz's "down time" while in the city; Cruz also appeared on Fox News at the time.
But the Daily Beast, citing an unnamed source, reports Cruz asked Trump for cash for Cruz's leadership PAC, which would allow him to use the money to pay for travel expenses or to support like-minded candidates in other races.
Federal Election Commission filings for the political action committee showed Trump made the maximum legal contribution of $5,000,
The Hill reported.
Trump later explained the donation wasn't anything more than a gift to "a nice guy" with whom he got "along with," according to
Politico.
But the Daily Beast reports Trump made the donation as he himself was putting together his 2016 plans for a presidential campaign and was aimed at "counter-balancing" his donations to liberal candidates.
© 2026 Newsmax. All rights reserved.