RNC paid about $60K for Trump to attend UFC match: report

The Republican National Committee (RNC) paid about $60,000 for ringside seats for President Trump and his guests at an Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) event at Madison Square Garden over the weekend, according to The Washington Post.

The price tag covered catering, security and seats for Trump, his two adult sons, and GOP Reps. Kevin McCarthy (Calif.), Mark Meadows (N.C.) and Pete King (N.Y.), the Post reported Monday. The price per ticket was not clear, although tickets cost between $100 and $700 each for the public.

{mosads}According to House ethics rules, lawmakers may accept free sporting event tickets if the event is a “bone fide” fundraiser, but the Saturday event was neither a campaign event nor an official fundraiser, according to the Post. An RNC official told the newspaper that the committee paid for the tickets because of Trump’s attendance.

The Hill has reached out to McCarthy’s, Meadows’s and King’s offices for comment. The RNC did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Trump and his guests were received with both cheers and boos from varying sections of the crowd at the event known as UFC 244: New York City, which ended early due to an injury to a fighter’s face.

The RNC last month paid $465 per seat for World Series tickets to Nationals Park for Trump and various congressional allies and White House officials, according to the Post, which noted that the RNC also paid for the president to attend the national college football championship game in Atlanta last year.