New super PAC backing Donald Trump aims to raise $20M
A super PAC backing Donald Trump for president is aiming to raise $20 million before the Republican National Convention in July, according to a release on Thursday.
The PAC is called the Committee for American Sovereignty and was formed by Doug Watts, a former aide to Ben Carson's campaign, who now serves as the group's executive director.
"With the recent announcement that a pro-Hillary Clinton's super PAC has already booked over $90 million in ad time in just seven states in June, it is clear we need to ramp up major donor fundraising efforts, unify Republicans, and take on the Clinton machine," Watts said in a statement.
He added that the PAC has already begun raising "significant funds in California" and from supporters in other states. Watts said the committee "will not accept special interest PAC contributions."
This comes a week after Trump said he didn't plan to self-fund his entire general election campaign.
"I'll be putting up money, but won't be completely self-funding," the presumptive GOP nominee said in an interview with The Wall Street Journal.
At the time, he said he planned to decide in the next week whether he would allow super PACs to fuel his race.
Last October, Trump's campaign announced that he had disavowed nine unauthorized super PACS "claiming to support him in his bid for the Republican nomination for President of the United States and subsequently demand[ed] the return of all funds raised."
One super PAC, "Make America Great Again," shut down last fall and said it would stop his fundraising activity.