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marmar

(79,514 posts) Sun Feb 22, 2026, 10:08 AM Yesterday

Ambassador Bridge owner's $1M donation to Trump PAC precedes border bridge threat

(CTV) The owner of the Ambassador Bridge made a $1 million contribution to a political fund backing Donald Trump less than a month before the U.S. President threatened to prevent the opening of the Gordie Howe International Bridge, according to a monthly campaign finance statement.

Matthew Moroun, whose family has operated the Ambassador Bridge for decades, made the seven-figure contribution to MAGA Inc. on Jan. 16, said the statement.

....(snip)....

Moroun reportedly met with U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick hours before Trump issued threats against the new border crossing, according to the New York Times.

Connecting Windsor, Ont., to Detroit, Mich., Moroun’s Ambassador Bridge stands to see increased competition for tolls once the Gordie Howe bridge opens. .................(more)

https://www.ctvnews.ca/windsor/article/ambassador-bridge-owners-1m-donation-to-trump-pac-precedes-border-bridge-threat/

2 replies

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Ambassador Bridge owner's $1M donation to Trump PAC precedes border bridge threat (Original Post) marmar Yesterday OP

So it wasn't about tariffs or Canada saying mean things or whatever. tinrobot Yesterday #1

MaddowBlog-Why a generous super PAC donation makes Trump's 'Bridgegate' look even worse LetMyPeopleVote 3 hrs ago #2

tinrobot

(12,032 posts)

1. So it wasn't about tariffs or Canada saying mean things or whatever.

Reply to marmar (Original post)

Sun Feb 22, 2026, 10:55 AM

Yesterday

It was just a simple bribe.

Follow the money always makes sense with these crooks.

LetMyPeopleVote

(177,760 posts)

2. MaddowBlog-Why a generous super PAC donation makes Trump's 'Bridgegate' look even worse

Reply to marmar (Original post)

Mon Feb 23, 2026, 02:32 PM

3 hrs ago

Given the recent pattern, it’s tough to ignore the pay-for-play appearances in an administration for which corruption allegations have become the norm.

The pattern of MAGA PAC donors getting what they want is striking, but Trumpâ€™s Bridgegate is special:

- Jan 16: billionaire writes a check to Trump-aligned super PAC
- Feb 9: billionaire meets with Howard Lutnick
- Feb 9: Trump abandons his own position and says what the billionaire wanted to hear
— Steve Benen (@stevebenen.com) 2026-02-23T17:03:23.547Z

https://www.ms.now/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/why-a-generous-super-pac-donation-makes-trumps-bridgegate-look-even-worse

It was against this backdrop that the Times added a new installment to the series on Saturday:

Less than one month before meeting with a top administration official to lobby against a new bridge connecting Michigan with Canada, the billionaire owner of an existing bridge donated $1 million to a super PAC devoted to President Trump.

Matthew Moroun, a Detroit-based trucking magnate whose family has operated the Ambassador Bridge between Detroit and Windsor, Ontario, for decades, made the donation to MAGA Inc. on Jan. 16, according to a campaign finance report filed on Friday evening.

.....Initially, it wasn’t at all clear what prompted Trump’s declaration, right up until we learned that a Michigan billionaire, Matthew Moroun, had met privately with administration officials, lobbying against the bridge. His motivation was obvious: Moroun owns a separate bridge that connects Michigan and Canada, and as former Democratic Sen. Debbie Stabenow of Michigan explained in a piece for MS NOW, he wants to maintain a near-monopoly with his single, privately owned toll bridge.

The Times’ latest reporting, however, made a bad story look worse. Consider a brief timeline:

Jan. 16: Moroun gives $1 million to MAGA Inc.

Feb. 9, midday: Moroun meets Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.

Feb. 9, evening: Trump abandons his own position and says what Moroun wanted to hear.

....But given the recent pattern, it’s tough to ignore the pay-for-play appearances in an administration for which corruption allegations have become the norm

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