Australia’s richest person Gina Rinehart has been revealed as a key member of the global group of wealthy women called the ‘Trumpettes’ who cheerlead for Donald Trump.
The mining magnate worth $36billion was this week spotted at the ex-president’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida as Mr Trump held an event confirming he would seek re-election in 2024.
Mrs Rinehart was seen with his close advisor My Pillow CEO Michael J Lindell in the background of an Instagram post by Trump’s son Eric.
Mrs Rinehart, 68, has long been a vocal supporter of President Trump, flying to his side when he was first elected in 2016.
She is also a quiet powerbroker in Australian conservative political circles.
Mining magnate Gina Rinehart was this week spotted in the background at Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida as the ex-president confirmed he would seek re-election in 2024
Gina Rinehart joined then-Prime Minister Scott Morrison and wife Jenny for dinner with the President and his wife Melania at the White House in October 2019
Her surprise appearance at Trump’s campaign kickoff has brought new attention on Mrs Rinehart’s behind the scenes activities.
Mrs Rinehart’s Trumpettes USA group includes celebrities such as Roseanne Barr – of the hit 80s and 90s sitcom Roseanne.
Gina Rinehart has now been linked to the Trumpettes USA who are regulars at Trump functions around the country and frequently seen at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida (Mrs Rinehart is pictured with Trumpettes founder Toni Holt Kramer)
It was formed by Toni Holt Kramer, a poodle-owning blonde former Hollywood TV reporter, model and actress.
Ms Kramer hailed Mrs Rinehart’s support, proclaiming her ‘Australia’s chief Trumpette’ in 2018.
She has since repeatedly name-checked the billionaire on social media.
‘We have Gina Rinehart who I met last year at Mar-a-Lago,’ revealed Ms Kramer on US TV at the time.
‘And someone said, you know, she’s a great supporter of the President. I’m so proud to say that Gina has become a Trumpette.’
Mrs Rinehart has made no secret of her support for the ex-President.
She met with him and his top aides, former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani and outspoken adviser Kellyanne Conway in 2016.
She backed his campaign promises to slash red tape for businesses and called for the Australian government to follow suit.
‘If only we were hearing similar policies from our own government,’ she said. ‘We need to let our government know this would be good for Australians too.
‘Unfortunately for Australia, government regulation and red tape is one of our biggest industries and it is growing.’
Back home Mrs Rinehart is widely perceived as a strong ally of the Coalition. She has recently helped fly Liberal leader Peter Dutton around the country on her personal aircraft.
Her mining company has also been a major donor to the conservative think-tank, the Institute of Public Affairs.
She is an honorary life member of the IPA, to which she has given speeches and demanded an end to governments using mining companies, like her Hancock Prospecting, as their ‘perpetual ATM’.
‘We are continually targeted and told to give more and more money to solve political problems we didn’t cause or create,’ she told the IPA.
Last year she warned Australia was on the same track as Sri Lanka and Argentina to fall from prosperity to poverty due to a big-spending, regulation-heavy government.
Mrs Rinehart has made no secret of her support for the ex-President and met with him and his team including Rudy Giuliani and Kellyanne Conway after his election in 2016
‘For generation after generation, we have wanted to hand down a better country for our children,’ she wrote in an essay obtained by Daily Mail Australia.
‘Sadly for this generation I believe this is now at risk, which the younger ones amongst us, in particular, should not want.’
Mrs Rinehart joined then-Prime Minister Scott Morrison and wife Jenny for dinner with Mr Trump and his wife Melania at the White House in October 2019.
They were among 173 guests for the dinner in the Rose Garden which also included fellow Australian mining boss Andrew ‘Twiggy’ Forrest and Australian astronaut Andy Thomas.
The meeting was hailed on the Trumpettes Facebook page after Ms Kramer had earlier crowned Mrs Rinehart as ‘Australia’s lead Trumpette’.
‘We are so proud to have her as our lead Trumpette in Australia,’ she told followers in 2018.
‘Trumpette Gina Rinehart also happens to be Australia’s richest woman, and who devotes her time to support charities and sports in her home country, Australia.
‘No effort is too much for this lady. She is on the go 24 hours non stop.’
She later posted more pics of herself with Mrs Rinehart in the US and a picture of a magazine feature in Marie Claire spotlighting the work of the Trumpettes.
Trumpettes USA founder Toni Holt Kramer crowned Gina Rinehart as ‘Australia’s lead Trumpette’ (pictured here with other Trumpettes in the USA)
The ‘Trumpettes’ are a global group of wealthy women who cheerlead for Donald Trump
She attributed a short speech to Mrs Rinehart in the seven part post, in which she hailed the work of the President.
‘The following comes from Australia from Gina Rinehart, one of our most dedicated Trumpettes and foremost dedicated woman, who gives her all to her country as well as concern for ours and the continuing leadership of President Donald J. Trump,’ she posted.
‘You see Trump’s arrogance, I see Trump’s confidence. You see Trump’s nationalism, I see Trump’s patriotism. You hear Trump’s unsophisticated words, I hear Trump’s honesty.
‘You see Trump’s racism, I see Trump’s words being twisted by the media. You see Trump as a Republican, I see Trump as a Patriot.’
The post continued on a similar theme for another five pages, but appears to be a common pro-Trump meme which has frequently been posted elsewhere
Daily Mail Australia has contacted Mrs Rinehart’s business, Hancock Prospecting, for comment on her relationship with Ms Kramer and the Trumpettes.
MEET THE TRUMPETTES: HOW GROUP WAS FOUNDED BY A PERSONAL FRIEND OF HILLARY CLINTON’S
Toni Kramer admits she was a personal friend of Hillary Clinton before the 2016 election but ditched the relationship to throw her support behind political rival Donald Trump in 2015
Founder Toni Kramer admits she was a personal friend of Hillary Clinton before the 2016 election but ditched the relationship to throw her support behind political rival Donald Trump in 2015.
She formed the group with pals Suzi Goldsmith, Terry Lee Ebert Mendozza and Janet Levy at a meeting of the Animal Humane Association at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, California, in September that year.
‘The four of us decided we needed to do something to make sure Donald J. Trump becomes President, so at 7pm that evening, The Trumpettes were born,’ Ms Kramer revealed.
‘We have many members worldwide and some prefer their privacy.’
It lists almost 800 named-members on its website, including Mrs Rinehart twice, and some men, known as Trumpsters.
Ms Kramer – who is married but claims to have been wooed by Hollywood stud Richard Burton and former First Lady Jackie Kennedy’s second husband, businessman Aristotle Onassis – refuses to reveal her age, but is said to be 84.
She had a handful of bit part roles in film and on TV in the early 70s – when she already appeared to be in her 30s – before becoming a Hollywood reporter where she became a close confidante of stars including Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Rock Hudson.
She later moved to the political circuit of Washington DC but is now Trump’s neighbour in Florida’s Palm Beach and splits her life between there and her other homes in Bel Air and Palm Springs in California.
Ms Kramer is a relentless campaigner for the President with her social media feeds are constantly updated with messages of support and pictures of her Trumpettes.
Her autobiography was published in 2019 and was entitled ‘Unstoppable Me – My Life in the spotlight.’
She says the Trumpettes set out to win over women to vote for Trump by making them ‘aware of what a great President and saviour of our country, Donald J. Trump will be.’
She added: ‘He is intelligent, has incredible business acumen, and he cannot be bought or bullied.
‘He is a man of fine character and it reflects in observing his family. His children are in every way what any parent would be proud of.’
Toni Holt Kramer formed the group with pals Suzi Goldsmith, Terry Lee Ebert Mendozza and Janet Levy at a meeting of the Animal Humane Association in Beverly Hills, California in 2015
She tells Trumpette members: ‘Your job as a Trumpette is to help get the real Donald J. Trump elected, not the one the press wants you to believe in.
‘No one networks better than women so introduce the real man to your family, your friends, the people you work with and anyone you come in contact with.
‘No matter whom you meet, where or how, just take a few minutes and talk about Trump.
‘Ask them what they think and then be ready to explain why you think Donald Trump will be the best President for all of America.’
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