Billionaire GOP donor warns against Trump: "Divisive human being who belongs in jail"

"It would be terrible for the country if Donald Trump were reelected," said hedge fund magnate Leon Cooperman

Published October 31, 2023 11:28AM (EDT)

Former US president and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump (FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images)
Former US president and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump (FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images)

Hedge fund billionaire Leon Cooperman, a prominent Republican donor who clashed with Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., over her proposed wealth tax, warned that it "would be terrible for the country if Donald Trump were reelected."

Cooperman, who has historically donated to GOP campaigns, previously said he "very reluctantly" voted for President Joe Biden in 2020. But he told CNN that he is not happy about the prospect of a Trump-Biden, rematch, calling them both "bad choices." Cooperman predicted, for some reason, that neither Biden nor Trump would be their party's nominee but added that he would not vote if it came down to those two. “I’m looking for centrists, not radical left or right,” said Cooperman, who donated to former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie's campaign earlier this year.

Trump spokesperson Steven Cheung, in response to Cooperman's remarks, claimed that Trump “will be the nominee and will beat Biden because he’s the only person who can supercharge the economy, secure our border, safeguard communities and put an end to unnecessary wars. Americans want to return to a prosperous nation and there’s only one person who can do that – President Trump."