Las Vegas Sun

March 18, 2024

Source: Adelson family donating $5 million more to pro-Gingrich PAC

Sheldon Adelson attends Venetian opening ceremony

Kin Cheung / AP

Sheldon Adelson, center, chairman and chief executive officer of Las Vegas Sands Corp., his wife, Miriam Adelson, left, and President William Weidner, right, attend the opening ceremony of the Venetian Macao Resort Hotel in Macau Tuesday, Aug. 28, 2007.

Dr. Miriam Adelson, the wife of Las Vegas casino mogul Sheldon Adelson, will match her husband’s $5 million contribution to a political action committee supporting Republican Newt Gingrich’s presidential bid, a source close to the couple confirmed today.

Sheldon Adelson’s $5 million contribution to the Winning Our Future super PAC is credited with helping propel Gingrich to victory in South Carolina on Saturday, a key win for the former House speaker’s once faltering campaign for the White House. The news was first reported on Twitter by Sun columnist Jon Ralston.

The contribution from Miriam Adelson comes as the super PAC is preparing to air campaign ads in Florida, a state where Mitt Romney, Gingrich’s chief rival, has already been spending heavily.

Winning Our Future has been key in answering the onslaught of attack ads against Gingrich sponsored by Romney’s super PAC Restore Our Future. Gingrich’s super PAC recently spent $354,000 four-day ad buy in Tampa, Fla., according to Politico.

The Associated Press reported that the Adelsons have asked that the money be used on ads that support Gingrich and not on negative attacks against other candidates.

Sources close to the Adelsons describe Gingrich as a personal friend. Sheldon Adelson and Gingrich share similar philosophies on everything from America’s policy on Israel to taxes and government spending.

Sheldon Adelson came to Gingrich’s rescue shortly after he lost to Romney and former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum in Iowa. His contributions have earned him notoriety as a potential kingmaker in the Republican presidential primary.

That donation helped finance the distribution of a 30-minute anti-Romney attack video that was aired in South Carolina. Gingrich won that state with 40 percent of the vote.

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