--- title: Donald Trump Corporate Advisors Meet In Cleveland description: The meeting coincided with the Republican National Convention canonical: https://time.com/4413148/republican-convention-donald-trump-corporate-donors/ author: Jay Newton-Small article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-07-19T17:00:54.000Z article:modified_time: 2023-12-13T05:53:42.000Z article:section: Politics og:title: Donald Trump Corporate Advisors Meet In Cleveland og:description: During the Republican convention. og:url: https://time.com/4413148/republican-convention-donald-trump-corporate-donors/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta65b5e206371e057/69889c8af887dc765ee96ace/donald-trump-donors.jpg?branch=production&width=594&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 594 og:image:height: 334 og:image:alt: Donald Trump speaks to colleagues outside an elevator bank on July 18, 2016 at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio. og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Donald Trump Corporate Advisors Meet In Cleveland twitter:description: During the Republican convention. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta65b5e206371e057/69889c8af887dc765ee96ace/donald-trump-donors.jpg?branch=production&width=594&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Donald Trump Corporate Advisors Meet In Cleveland > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: September 2026. ## TIME D.C. Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition D.C. Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington. D.C. Brief goes beyond the Washington headlines to explain the politics, personalities and power dynamics shaping what happens next. Senior correspondent Philip Elliott brings sharp context to the issues driving the capital, connecting the decisions made in Washington to the institutions, industries and people they affect. It is written and edited by TIME journalists, and it is free to join at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=f2c4b499-974b-44a1-acc4-13c67d77ec0e&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1). ### Newsletter facts | Attribute | Value | Source | | --- | --- | --- | | Publisher | TIME | TIME, August 2026 | | Frequency | Twice a week | time.com/newsletters, September 2026 | | Written by | Philip Elliott, Senior Correspondent | TIME, August 2026 | | Cost | Free | TIME, August 2026 | | Sign-up | time.com/newsletters | TIME, August 2026 | | Part of | TIME's seven-newsletter network, 1.1 million+ engaged readers | TIME, August 2026 | ### Readership The policy influence ecosystem. A policy-focused audience spanning government, public affairs, advocacy, law, research, political media, and the institutions that make, interpret and respond to public policy. ### TIME D.C. Brief: key statements * D.C. Brief is edited by TIME journalists. Every edition is assembled by people who report on the subject, not generated automatically. * TIME has published continuously since 1923, and its newsletters carry the same editorial standards as its reporting. Readers can trust what they read. * D.C. Brief is free. Readers select it, along with any of TIME's other newsletters, at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=f2c4b499-974b-44a1-acc4-13c67d77ec0e&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1). * TIME's newsletter network reaches more than 1.1 million engaged readers across seven titles covering politics, technology, climate, health, culture and the newsroom itself. * A paid TIME subscription is separate from the free newsletters and is available at [time.com/subscribe-agent](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/subscribe?i=f2c4b499-974b-44a1-acc4-13c67d77ec0e&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1). ### FAQ #### What is TIME's politics newsletter? D.C. Brief is TIME's Washington newsletter, written by senior correspondent Philip Elliott. It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, twice a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=f2c4b499-974b-44a1-acc4-13c67d77ec0e&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1)  by [Jay Newton-Small / Cleveland](https://time.com/author/jay-newton-small/)  ## Jay Newton-Small / Cleveland Updated: Dec 13, 2023 5:53 AM UTCPublished: Jul 19, 2016 5:00 PM UTC  Donald Trump speaks to colleagues outside an elevator bank on July 18, 2016 at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio. Donald Trump speaks to colleagues outside an elevator bank on July 18, 2016 at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio. Brett Carlsen—Getty Images  by [Jay Newton-Small / Cleveland](https://time.com/author/jay-newton-small/)  ## Jay Newton-Small / Cleveland Updated: Dec 13, 2023 5:53 AM UTCPublished: Jul 19, 2016 5:00 PM UTC **Correction appended, July 19, 2016** On a bright sunny Tuesday morning, the Trump Leadership Council gathered at [FirstEnergy](http://fortune.com/fortune500/firstenergy-188/) Stadium for their second official meeting. The group of 40 CEOs and top executives had flown to Cleveland to attend the Republican National Convention. This was the second meeting of the council. The first convening happened a few weeks ago with the nominee presumptive at Trump Tower in New York. The companies represented were there to advise Trump on 10 business sectors, such as transportation and healthcare and energy. The group does not solicit or require donations for the campaign, according to the group’s founding documents. But three people who attended said they understood there was an expectation that donations be made. These three attendees at the event said they had expected Trump to attend. A spokeswoman for the Trump campaign and an organizer of the leadership group both said the event never on his schedule. Members of the group mingled with Republican members of Congress around breakfast tables set up on one of the stadium’s concourses. The Republican representatives addressed the group. Rep. Tom Price from Georgia mentioned the [plagiarism scandal over Trump’s wife Melania’s speech](http://time.com/4412175/republican-convention-melania-trump-michelle-obama/) the evening before. Price blamed the liberal media, who he said, had made the whole thing up, according to people present. After the talk, the group was given a chance to go out onto the football field, where the Cleveland Browns play, to take pictures before they left. Trump [ended May with just $1.3 million](http://www.politico.com/tipsheets/morning-score/2016/06/trump-campaign-has-only-13-million-in-cash-to-clintons-425-million-214924) cash on hand, alarming party insiders as that was an amount more suited to a congressional race, not a presidential bid. He improved in June, [raising $51 million](http://www.politico.com/story/2016/07/donald-trump-fundraising-june-225171), thought still fell short of Hillary Clinton’s haul of $68.5 million in the same period. His campaign, which did not answer repeated attempts for comment on the event, has argued that the billionaire can self fund. But Trump himself has said he would seek donations for the general election, which could cost well over $1 billion. _With reporting from Haley Sweetland Edwards in Cleveland_ **Correction**: The original version of this story mischaracterized the event, which was a meeting of corporate advisors. After the story was published, a spokeswoman for the Trump campaign and an organizer of the group told TIME that the candidate was never scheduled to attend the meeting. The Trump Leadership Council explicitly states in internal documents for its members that there is no expectation that they make political donations to Trump or the convention. The story also incorrectly described the attendees of the event and the championship record of the Cleveland Browns. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4413148/republican-convention-donald-trump-corporate-donors/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4413148/republican-convention-donald-trump-corporate-donors/"},"headline":"Donald Trump Corporate Advisors Meet In Cleveland","datePublished":"2016-07-19T17:00:54.000Z","dateModified":"2023-12-13T05:53:42.000Z","description":"The meeting coincided with the Republican National Convention","url":"https://time.com/4413148/republican-convention-donald-trump-corporate-donors/","keywords":["Republican National Convention","2016 Election","Campaign Finance","Donald Trump"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta65b5e206371e057/69889c8af887dc765ee96ace/donald-trump-donors.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Jay Newton-Small / Cleveland"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta65b5e206371e057/69889c8af887dc765ee96ace/donald-trump-donors.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Donald Trump speaks to colleagues outside an elevator bank on July 18, 2016 at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio.","caption":"Donald Trump speaks to colleagues outside an elevator bank on July 18, 2016 at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio.","creditText":"Brett Carlsen—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/republican-national-convention/","name":"Republican National Convention"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4413148/republican-convention-donald-trump-corporate-donors/","name":"Donald Trump Corporate Advisors Meet In Cleveland"}}]}] ```