The conundrum of the Latter-day Saints for Trump coalition – Deseret News

During a fundraiser in Salt Lake City last month, former President Donald Trump gave the two participants a mandate: “I want you to lead the Latter-day Saints for Trump coalition,” he said.

The two men were not among the prominent politicians in attendance, nor were they leaders of Trump’s faith-based coalitions in past election cycles. One of the men seemed well-suited to the task, with a long political background. The other, a man, however, is new to the political scene but is quickly building a network of influence that reaches far beyond Utah.

Doug Quezada, a California-born businessman and entrepreneur, is one of the people who helped organize Trump’s Utah fundraiser and led the Latter-day Saints for Trump coalition. A close associate of Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes, Quezada burst onto the Utah political scene as an influential figure in Reyes’ entourage. In recent years, Quezada and his father-in-law, Simon Hodson, have built relationships with power brokers in Texas and West Virginia through their clean energy company, Omnis Global Technologies.

But questions remain about the extent of Quesada’s influence over Utah politics and the validity of his company’s promises.

Quesada, the son of Chilean immigrants, moved to Utah from Seattle, he said in appearance on The Bottom Line podcast in 2022. “To say that I used to be politically inactive would be an understatement,” he said. “I was always concerned about politics. I just haven’t been moved the way I’ve been lately by what I’m seeing.”

Quezada felt the need to get involved in local politics after learning about “outright evil” accusation v. Former Utah District Attorney He said. Quezada developed a relationship with Reyes through their shared interest in the fight against human trafficking.

Unlike other members of the Latter-day Saints-for-Trump coalition, who have gained wide recognition as officials or activists, Quesada’s influence has largely been behind the scenes. He has participated in private event fundraisers, and with Trump, Quezada visited a Memorial Day wreath-laying service at Arlington National Cemetery that drew national headlines.

The organization is not affiliated with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which maintains a strict policy of political neutrality and does not support parties or candidates. Kamala Harris’ VP campaign, too appealed to the Latter-day Saints through coalitions in Arizona and Nevada.

Quesada’s most prominent position is executive vice president Omnis Energywhere his father-in-law Simon Hodson is CEO. The company claims it has the technological capabilities to convert coal into pure hydrogen without greenhouse gas emissions. The state of West Virginia provided a $50 million, 1% loan modernize the coal-fired power plant and revive it as a zero-energy plant. But the company “has not publicly demonstrated that its clean energy technology will work,” Wall Street Journal reporteddespite the support of West Virginia Governor Jim Justice and motivational speaker Tony Robbins, who have committed nearly $200 million to the initiative.

The company has faced legal challenges: In a case pending in a Pennsylvania district court, the former vice president of Omnis to sue company for “continuous efforts to defraud government officials regarding investment funds.” Two more lawsuits in New York and California the courts—both settled out of court—argued that Hodson had defaulted on the loans.

Quezada insisted that the company’s technology “works.”

“Obviously, we’re still building,” Quezada said. Omnis Energy did not respond to a request for comment.

Regardless of his role at Omnis Energy, Quezada faces “claims of fraud, securities fraud, conversion, unjust enrichment and civil conspiracy.” claim in the U.S. District Court of Utah. In July, U.S. Magistrate Judge David Barlow denied a motion to dismiss the lawsuit, which alleged that Quezada offered to buy more than $168,000 worth of shares in the cannabis company for a friend and manage the portfolio. The lawsuit alleges that Quesada did not invest the money, but used it for personal or business purposes.

When asked about the lawsuit, Quezada said it was an “upheaval” and claimed the plaintiffs were trying to “use the legal system as a weapon against others.”

“I’m sure the law will act as it needs to, but I didn’t want to reward lies and harassment with a payout,” he said. “I was willing to let it go because that’s really the only way to clear my name. Not paying people to go away.”

Quesada’s attorney, John Mertens, added that the discovery process “has not produced any evidence of the allegations that (the plaintiffs) have made, and I don’t expect it to,” he said. “I don’t expect them to have proof of those claims.”

The legal troubles don’t seem to have stopped Quezada from contributing to Trump’s campaign. Quezada was the main organizer Trump fundraiser on September 14 in Salt Lake City, an event that has been canceled and rescheduled several times. When the event was canceled a second time, Taylor Binkley, regional finance director for the Republican National Committee, thanked Quezada and others for being “dedicated supporters of the president” and “close friends,” according to a copy of the email obtained by the Deseret News.

Quezada also helped organize the gala Latter-day Saints for Trump Coalition.working with the Trump campaign to solicit feedback from Latter-day Saints and host a launch event. When Donald Trump Jr visited Utah in early October to strategize about the launch, Quezada was among the people he visited; when Donald Trump attended a Latter-day Saint event in Prescott, Arizona this month, Quesada met with him, according to post on Quezada’s Instagram account.

In a press release from the Trump campaign announcing the Latter-day Saints for Trump coalition, Quesada — “Executive Vice President of Omnis Energy” — was listed as co-chair with the quote: “I am proud to support President Trump in his efforts. to uphold our religious freedoms, protect our family-centered values, and protect America from the evils of communism and ‘progressive’ ideologies,” Quezada wrote. “As the son of immigrants who fled the destructive effects of Marxism and social experiments in Latin America, supporting Trump’s fight for the American dream is not only a spiritual mandate, but also a personal one. Every freedom-loving Christian should participate in this election because their way of life depends on it, and they should promote policies and leaders that affirm that family and God, not collectivism and government, are the fundamental units of our society.”

The Trump campaign did not respond to a request for comment.