WASHINGTON — Former Congressman Devin Nunes left the United States House of Representatives to lead former President Donald Trump’s social media venture with plenty of political capital in his pocket.
The California Republican departed with more than $11.3 million stored in his campaign account, according to his most recent Federal Election Commission filing for the period ending on Dec. 31, 2021. He had an additional $426,000 in his leadership political action committee, the New PAC fund.
Nunes set some records in the process. He had more cash on hand than any congressional candidate who announced they would retire during or at the end of this term, according to data compared by Open Secrets, which tracks campaign finance.
He also had the most of any House member who left office in the past decade. Former Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, who retired at the end of his term in 2019, was the closest — at about $5.8 million on hand, said Andrew Mayersohn, a committees researcher at OpenSecrets.
And he had the most campaign committee cash on hand of any Republican incumbent in the House, according to the Open Secrets data, for the period ending Dec. 31. Only four Democrats had more: California Reps. Adam Schiff and Katie Porter, New Jersey Rep. Josh Gottheimer and Illinois Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi.
There’s no reason Nunes has to give that money up, Mayersohn said. In fact, “there’s no reason they can’t hold onto it forever,” he said in an interview with The Fresno Bee.
If he does, it could suggest he’s interested in another campaign.
Leftover assets can be stored for future campaigns, spent on campaign or office-related costs, refunded to donors or donated to other candidates, committees or charities, according to the FEC, which oversees campaign finance. The FEC prohibits candidates from using that cash for personal expenditures, but otherwise funds can be used for “any other lawful purpose.”
Leadership PACS are under fewer restrictions.
That money could also go toward a future political run, Mayersohn of OpenSecrets said. If Nunes holds onto his $11.7 million, it could be a fruitful start: Senator Elizabeth Warren, for example, transferred more than $10 million from her Senate funds to her recent presidential campaign.
Nunes has been a generous donor to his Republican colleagues, a time-honored way to cultivate political goodwill. He gave the National Republican Congressional Committee, the GOP’s House campaign sector, almost $970,000 this year. And he’s made contributions to at least 70 fellow Republicans.
In his final month, Nunes’ was giving to his pro-Trump colleagues from his campaign committee and New PAC, including $5,000 to Rep. Mike Garcia and $9,000 to Rep. Ken Calvert, California Republicans who both face difficult elections this year.
Last year, Nunes also paid campaign bills with some of his money.
Many of the disbursements Nunes made last year were to his long-time advertisement consultant, River Right LLC, which was incorporated by Tal Cloud. Cloud served as Nunes’ consultant since the 2018 election cycle; he is the brother-in-law to Nunes’ former campaign advertising consultant.
Nunes gave River Right $1.37 million in 2021 across his campaign committee and New PAC. He spent about $3.3 million total in 2021.
About a month before he announced his departure, Nunes paid $4,000 to prominent D.C. lawyers who specialize in “campaign finance & election law, government ethics, lobbying law, corporate anti-corruption compliance, government investigations, non-profits, and fundraising,” according to their website.
The firm, Berke Farah LLP, has previously aided Republican House members, including House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy. Nunes has paid for their counsel before, his FEC report shows: $14,345 this year. He gave them over $39,000 in the 2020 cycle, according to OpenSecrets.
Nunes’ team did not respond to a request for comment. Cloud declined to comment. The law firm did not respond to a request for comment.
Nunes is not endorsing anyone to fill his spot in the special election to replace him, he told local radio host Ray Appleton on KMJ Now.
He did endorse his fellow Rep. Tom McClintock, R-Elk Grove, to run in California’s new 5th Congressional District, which experts had predicted Nunes would seek to represent in 2022 if he had decided to run again.
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