By Andy Sullivan
(Reuters) -U.S. President Donald Trump faces renewed accusations of monetizing the presidency, with potential conflicts of interest emerging from ventures that include cryptocurrency, social media and other avenues for those seeking to funnel money his way.
Trump handed over management of those assets to his children before returning to the White House and he will have no role in day-to-day decisionmaking, according to his company. An outside ethics lawyer will monitor the company’s activities and his investments will likewise be handled by an outside firm.
The Trump Organization also says it will not enter into new material transactions with foreign governments and says it will donate all profits from foreign government patronage to the U.S. Treasury.
That largely mirrors the arrangement he had during his first term from 2017-2021, which ethics experts said did not do enough to prevent conflicts between his official duties and his business empire.
During his first term, foreign dignitaries, business executives and Republican allies spent freely at the Trump International Hotel, situated in a historic federal building blocks from the White House.
Here are some of the ways that Trump, a businessman whose first publicly elected office was the presidency, could profit from his status as president in his second term:
CRYPTOCURRENCY
Trump launched two cryptocurrency tokens called $TRUMP and $MELANIA shortly before taking office in January, attracting billions of speculative dollars and sparking new ethics concerns. Watchdog groups say the tokens provide a way for foreign buyers to curry favor, as Trump-affiliated companies owned 80% of all stock and stand to benefit when the price rises. The coin generated close to $100 million in trading fees in the first two weeks after its debut.
Trump and his affiliates also hold a 60% stake in World Liberty Financial, a crypto platform launched last year.
Trump has promised to regulate the industry favorably and his administration has eased enforcement actions against several big industry players. He has proposed a government-owned “strategic reserve” of cryptocurrencies.
REAL ESTATE
Trump no longer owns a showcase property in Washington, as his company sold the lease on the Trump International Hotel in 2022 and it is now a Waldorf Astoria. The Wall Street Journal reported that his family is in talks to possibly reacquire the lease on the 263-room hotel.
Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida has become a popular spot for Republican Party fundraisers and other conservative events, which put money in his pockets. The property stood to generate $24 million in cash last year, according to a Reuters analysis. His golf courses have posted healthy returns, thanks in part to patronage from political supporters.
Trump has billed the U.S. Secret Service for lodging and other services while protecting him at his hotels and golf courses, though he has promised to offer a discount.
On the international front, Trump’s real-estate company said last year it would develop Trump-branded towers in Dubai and Saudi Arabia. In 2022 the Trump Organization announced a deal to build a resort in Oman.
Trump has proposed that the U.S. should clear the war-torn Gaza Strip and develop it as an international beach resort, echoing an idea floated by his son-in-law Jared Kushner.
Kushner, who served as a White House adviser during Trump’s first term, now runs a private-equity firm fueled by investments from Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
SOCIAL MEDIA
Trump’s Truth Social platform is a Nasdaq-listed company that is held widely by retail investors, some of whom say they bought it as a gesture of support. The stock price has swung wildly along with his political fortunes and dropped 30% during his first month in office. Trump himself owns more than half of all shares.
Trump has given a high-profile administration role to tech billionaire Elon Musk, who has overseen an effort to radically shrink and reshape the federal workforce, including agencies that regulate his companies Tesla, SpaceX and Neuralink.
Musk regularly praises Trump on X, the social media platform he bought in 2022. The Wall Street Journal reported that X paid $10 million to Trump to settle a lawsuit he filed after he was suspended from the service in 2021.
Meta likewise paid $25 million shortly after Trump’s inauguration to settle a lawsuit filed by Trump after it suspended his Facebook and Instagram accounts following the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. Meta has scrapped fact-checking efforts that have been criticized as biased by conservatives.
TRADITIONAL MEDIA
Trump sued CBS News for $20 billion during the presidential campaign, alleging that it had treated his Democratic rival Kamala Harris favorably. The Federal Communications Commission, headed by a Trump appointee, is also investigating.
CBS could face pressure to settle the lawsuit as its parent company Paramount seeks FCC approval for an $8.4 billion merger with Skydance Media.
The FCC is also investigating ABC News for its moderation of a debate between Harris and Trump, and NBC News for letting Harris appear on a “Saturday Night Live” program just before the November 2024 election.
Amazon.com is paying $40 million for a documentary about first lady Melania Trump, according to Puck News, though it is not clear how much she will get paid. The tech giant also provides cloud computing and other services to the government, and Trump’s administration faced accusations of favoritism when it awarded a lucrative contract to Microsoft, an Amazon rival, during his first presidential term.
CONSUMER PRODUCTS
During his last presidential campaign, Trump promoted a wide range of consumer products, including sneakers and a digital token. Disclosure filings show he earned a $300,000 fee for promoting a Bible published by a country singer.
Oklahoma’s top education official last year specified that the 55,000 Bibles he sought to buy for public schools would have to meet specifications only met by Trump’s version, according to a local watchdog. The official later loosened his criteria in the face of widespread criticism.
(Reporting by Andy Sullivan; Editing by Scott Malone and Howard Goller)
Comments