Teamsters pledge major donation to GOP after meeting with Trump

Major labor union the Teamsters that has donated to Democrats for decades pledged a $45,000 donation to the Republican National Committee last month after meeting with former President Donald Trump. 

The reported donation is not an endorsement of the Republican nominee or Trump as the frontrunner, however, it is a move in stark contrast to the union supporting every Democratic nominee for the president since Al Gore. 

According to the Washignton Post, this was the second time the union was meeting with the former president.  

Following a meeting in January with Teamsters, Trump told reporters he had a "good shot" at getting an endorsement from the organization. Teamsters also sent $135,000 to the DNC last December as well as a $15,000 donation last March.  

The donation magnifies the difficulty that Biden as begun having with blue collar workplaces in highly unionized industries. Trump has been receiving a high number of donations from this voter block, according to Bloomberg.  

There has been some confusion as the dontation to the RNC has not gone through as of yet, however, federal donor records have shown the union as making the pledge.  

Teamsters chief Sean O’Brien, who met with Trump, has said that it is important for union members to know all the options for candidates and insisted that their votes "will not be taken for granted." 

O'Brien has become aware that many of the union members, who comprise about 1.3 million UPS and other transportation workers, are very supportive of the former president.