Conservative pundit Michael Reagan has been bashing Donald Trump's presidential campaign while flooding his readers with sponsored emails for Trump donations and merchandise.
Reagan, the son of President Reagan and actress Jane Wyman, is a conservative political commentator and businessman who is frequently interviewed about all things Reagan. Since Trump's presidential announcement, and ahead of the Republican debate at the Reagan Library, he has been making the rounds criticizing the Republican candidate and minimizing the purported similarities between Trump and his father.
Reagan told Politico in a recent interview that unlike Trump, “Ronald Reagan would never take 11 million people or three million people or a million people and throw them out of the United States of America.” Reagan told CNN that Trump is the candidate least like his father because “Trump will 'throw people off the bus' rather than building coalitions that can help the GOP win national elections.” Reagan said on Newsmax TV in August that Trump is “using my father on one side, and on the other side trashing everything my father, in fact, believed in.”
Michael Reagan's newsletter, Reagan Reports, has inundated email subscribers with sponsored messages touting Trump campaign solicitations and merchandise.
Reagan has sent readers an “Urgent Message from Donald J. Trump” to give the billionaire's campaign “a contribution of $25, $50, $100, $250.” Reagan sent the emails on August 1, 6, and 11. An accompanying note for the August 11 email said the Trump campaign email was “a special message from our sponsor, Donald Trump. Sponsorships like this allow us to continue our work to educate the American people on the important issues affecting our country. We appreciate your support.”
Reagan has also embedded Trump campaign advertising images and text links, such as this one on August 4. The links on the advertisements take readers to a Newsmax.com advertising page which features a solicitation for campaign contributions.
Reagan Reports also sent sponsored emails promoting Trump merchandise. On August 15, Reagan sent an email for readers to get their “very own 'Make America Great Again' cap (a $25 value) FREE with this offer, just pay shipping & handling.” Reagan repeatedly sent emails offering readers the chance to get “Get Your FREE Copy of Donald Trump's 'Time to Get Tough'!” through Newsmax.
Michael Reagan's email list, which claims to have 565,000 subscribers, is managed by Newsmax, a conservative website that makes tens of millions of dollars through “a smorgasbord of political, health, and financial information, self-help books, and even vitamin supplements constantly pushed through the website and e-mail lists.” The Washington Post reported on August 11 that Newsmax has been partnering with email lists owners “to help raise money for Trump -- all while allowing them to keep 30 percent of what's contributed to the candidate.” Other conservatives such as the Daily Caller, Dick Morris, PJ Media, and Herman Cain have also sent sponsored emails for Trump's campaign.
Reagan's conflicting promotions of Trump is just another example of how conservative media dupe their followers for cash.