It is hard to find a bigger fan of Donald Trump than conservative columnist and Sharknado 3 star Ann Coulter. Ever since the current Republican presidential frontrunner launched his campaign last June, Coulter was an early high-profile supporter of his candidacy — and from the beginning said Trump would be the strongest general election candidate.
Coulter has been doing what she can to push the national case for a Trump presidency and, lately, that means trolling for new voters in one of America’s staunchest Democratic strongholds: Liberal Hollywood.
Coulter, who has a home in Los Angeles (you can read about her partying with her conservative friends in LA here), is perhaps Trump’s biggest booster in Hollywood, a town far better known for its progressive artistic output or major-league Democratic donors than for its closet (or not-so-closeted, see: Jon Voight or James Woods) conservatives.
“There are definitely more conservatives in Hollywood than anyone would expect,” Coulter told The Daily Beast. “I always say that if they all came out at once, they’d realize they’re a majority.”
A recent Hollywood Reporter story on Friends of Abe (a secretive group for Hollywood right-wingers, both famous and not) noted that Coulter has been making the rounds in Hollywood preaching the Trump gospel. This has generally involved her promoting his positions on illegal immigration. Recently, she has done so at dinner events with Clint Eastwood (a Republican whose top political issue is being incredibly anti-war), as well as dozens of others in the film industry.
Coulter’s more private advocacy also includes anything as simple as emailing clips around to like-minded, politically engaged friends in Los Angeles, encouraging them to come out for Trump. She has shared her enthusiasm for his 2016 White House run with other members of Friends of Abe. The organization — which includes actors Kelsey Grammer, Patricia Heaton, Jon Voight (who officially endorsed Trump last week), Gary Sinise, and Eastwood — does not endorse candidates, but it did host Trump at a sold-out, invite-only dinner at Los Angeles’s Luxe Sunset Boulevard Hotel last July. (The invitation identified the real-estate mogul as the “very definition of American success.”)
FOA has been described as a “stealth right-wing group” that is “influential in conservative circles,” and as operating under “the same PR rules as Fight Club.”
The group is focused on creating “fellowship” among Hollywood Republicans and conservatives within the industry, but their exclusive gatherings have also emerged as chances for GOP candidates to explore potential support and future fundraising opportunities, much in the same way that Democratic politicians often swing through Hollywood in order to charm their famous, deep-pocketed fans and thus potential bundlers and surrogates.
“Ann is not in Friends of Abe, but she's a friend of the group—she has spoken at events before, and she has a lot of friends in the group and is always welcome at our events,” an FOA member told The Daily Beast.
According to multiple individuals in FOA, members generally tend to favor Texas senator and Trump rival Ted Cruz more than the Republican frontrunner.
“I don't support Trump and I would say most of FOA does not support Trump,” another member told The Daily Beast. “Leans more for Cruz.” (FOA previously hosted and toasted Cruz at a prior event. Coulter has, as has Trump, suggested that Cruz is not even eligible to be president of the United States.)
"Hollywood should support [Trump] for all sorts of reasons, not least of which is the fact that it's impossible to get around in LA with two million illegals on the road," she told THR. "On the other hand, Hollywood liberals may have to start paying their maids more."
When asked by The Daily Beast if she could elaborate on her “behind the scenes,” pro-Trump advocacy mentioned by THR or the aforementioned dinners with film-industry insiders, Coulter demurred.
“I think I can give you my answer to all of these [questions] by saying my support [for] Trump has been pretty much on public display,” she said. “I can't lay claim to any hand-behind-the-throne stuff.”
Needless to say, Coulter will continue to press her case for Trump no matter what city she is in, or whatever coast she is on. After all, she has been doing so for years.
“Our side needs Donald Trump,” the conservative pundit told Fox News host Sean Hannity back in October 2012.
“Thanks Ann,” Trump tweeted in response to Coulter, one of the 42 accounts he actually follows on Twitter.
