During his first presidential run back in 2016, Donald Trump’s credibility as a “populist” rested largely on the fact that he was a billionaire. Unlike his opponents, who he accused of being “controlled” by their donors, the New York real estate developer claimed to be entirely self-funded and therefore free from any kind of outside influence. “I don’t need anybody’s money,” he bragged at his announcement in 2015, where he disparaged his opponents as mere puppets to plutocrats like himself.
This was a paradoxical yet also powerful message that ultimately helped propel the billionaire to victory.n. Trump’s Democratic opponent, Hillary Clinton, embodied the Washington establishment and had a long history of courting big donors to fund her political career. This made her particularly vulnerable to his attacks. While Trump could claim with some credibility to funding his own campaign, there was little doubt that Clinton was the preferred candidate of the donor class. Big donors weren’t necessarily thrilled with the prospect of a Clinton presidency, but most considered Trump too much of a wild card to get behind. In any case, few thought he had any chance of winning.
