In a significant departure for the powerful organized labor group, the Teamsters' PAC has given $45,000 to the Republican National Committee for the first time in 20 years, The Washington Post reported.
According to the outlet, the donation is the first one the union has made to the RNC since 2004, when it gave $15,000. In keeping with its historical support of Democrats, the Teamsters also contributed to the Democratic National Committee, giving $135,000 in December and $15,000 in March.
Citing federal records, the Post reported that the donation to the RNC — which was the maximum amount allowed from the union's political action committee — was made the same day former President Donald Trump met with the union's leadership for the second time in January.
An RNC official who spoke with the Post on condition of anonymity said the organization has not received a check or heard from the Teamsters about a forthcoming donation.
The gift to the RNC has outraged some of the union's more left-leaning leaders and members, but Trump is reportedly popular among a lot of the rank and file, according to the Post.
The union, which represents approximately 1.3 million UPS and other transportation workers, endorsed Barack Obama in 2008 and 2012, Hillary Clinton in 2016, and Joe Biden in 2020, but has not yet endorsed anyone for president in 2024.
Biden has frequently touted his strong labor union ties. According to the Post, his biggest wins for the labor movement include approving trillions in infrastructure, semiconductor and climate spending that incentivize hiring union workers, as well as appointing a labor advocate to head the National Labor Relations Board.
John Palmer, a Teamsters executive board member, told the Post that the donation to the RNC looks like a "tacit endorsement of Trump."
"We've never done anything like this in my time on the board," he said. "I suspect the play is that we'll have a bit more leverage with the GOP, but it appears like a tacit endorsement of Trump."
Trump told reporters he had a "good shot" at receiving the union's endorsement after a meeting in late January at the Teamsters' headquarters in Washington, D.C. During the same news conference, however, Teamsters President Sean O'Brien said the Biden administration had "been great for unions" and added that the Teamsters had "some more questions that need to be asked to both candidates."