Billionaire Ronald Lauder has spent decades writing checks to Republicans, giving some $40 million to the party in the last ten years alone, including $5 million to MAGA, Inc., last year. But unfortunately for Republicans, it appears that the cosmetics heir and Donald Trump’s friend of 50 years is done bankrolling the party — though not for the reason you might expect!

Lauder, who is worth an estimated $4.9 billion thanks to the makeup company his mother founded, has reportedly not made a single donation to the GOP this year, according to the New York Times. The outlet reports that he has also “quietly dismissed a stable of well-paid advisers, ad makers and other consultants who regularly reported to his personal office in the Estée Lauder headquarters overlooking Central Park in Manhattan,” some of whom had worked for him for more than 30 years. Why the sudden shift? Has Lauder had a change of heart about the party of Trump in general or perhaps Donald Trump specifically, both of which have given people a clown car’s worth of reasons not to support them, from reports of widespread corruption to human-rights abuses to dousing D.C. in gold? Just to be clear, the answer is no; Lauder is........

© Daily Intelligencer