Losing Steve Wynn Is A Big Deal For The GOP

It was a brief announcement by Ronna Romney McDaniel, the chair of the Republican National Committee:  “Today I accepted Steve Wynn’s resignation as Republican National Committee finance chair.”  That’s it.  Nothing about the allegations against billionaire casino mogul Steve Wynn. Nothing about the story in the Wall Street Journal where multiple victims told of everything from inappropriate sexual contact to rape by Wynn (he has denied the allegations. “The idea that I ever assaulted any woman is preposterous.” )

The New York Daily News summarized some of the Journal’s findings:

• -Wynn regularly walked around his complex in extremely short shirts without underwear.
• -He often sat for pedicures in a way that exposed his genitals.
• -He repeatedly propositioned his wife’s married assistant — calling her up to ask, “What are you wearing?” and “Why don’t you hang out with me?” He told one employee, “So when are you going to come into my office and f–k me?”
• -He directed his longtime assistant to track down the home phone numbers of casino cocktail waitresses.
• -Women workers were so afraid to be alone with him they sometimes hid in bathrooms when they learned he was on his way to the salon.
• -Others scheduled fake appointments for women employees to avoid having to service him at his office in Wynn Resort.

Also, there was nothing in the statement about his time with the RNC or his on-again, off-again friendship with Donald Trump.  And don’t think for a second there’s not a lot to tell.  Wynn once called Trump-a casino rival-  “incompetent, all hat and no cattle.”   Trump called Wynn an “underachiever.”  Now the former enemies are supposedly “great friends,” according to Trump.  Maybe that has something to do with the fact that Wynn’s companies donated more than $700,000 to Trump’s inauguration.  Wynn, who built the Mirage, Treasure Island, Bellagio, Wynn, and Encore casinos in Las Vegas has also opened properties in Macau, China.  He is estimated to be worth more than $2.5 billion.

But losing Steve Wynn from the RNC isn’t about all the money he has, it was also about all he could raise.

Finance chair is really a misleading title.  Wynn was in charge of fundraising for the Republican Party.  He personally has given more than $2 million to GOP campaigns.  According to NBC News,  “he’s given to the RNC, National Republican Senatorial Committee, the National Republican Congressional Committee and President Donald Trump’s inaugural committee, among other GOP lawmakers and causes, according to Federal Election Commission filings. He has also donated to Democratic causes and candidates.”  Shortly after he raised $100 million for the Trump inauguration, the President awarded him the chairmanship of the finance committee of the RNC.  For Republicans facing a tough mid-term election battle, Wynn’s departure is disastrous.  According to Bloomberg, “the RNC, under Wynn,  set a fundraising record in 2017 for a non-election year. It ended November with $33.5 million more in the bank than its Democratic counterpart, thanks in part to the big donors Wynn can attract.”

And then there’s the Harvey Weinstein comparison.  When the Harvey Weinstein scandal broke, Republicans were quick to pounce on all the donations Democrats had accepted from the Hollywood mogul.

Now the Democrats are calling out Wynn.

“In the exact words of RNC Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel, ‘If you stand for treating women well and you stand for the respect of women, you shouldn’t take money from somebody who treated women with the absolute highest level of disrespect,’” said Sabrina Singh, a spokeswoman for the Democratic National Committee.

So far in this election cycle, Wynn has given more than $100,000 to the National Republican Senatorial Committee. No word if Republicans will be returning any of the money.