This week, President Trump’s financial disclosure confirmed what we’ve known for months: the presidency has become the most lucrative business he’s ever run. Between a secret no-bid contract for his ballroom, a stock trade timed to an ICE weapons contract, and a tungsten deal enriching two sons and a Cabinet secretary’s family, the picture is unmistakable: the machinery of government is being run for private profit while inflation keeps squeezing everyone else. Trump is asking Republican senators to bless his business model by making his former personal attorney, who has been ignoring all of this at DOJ, the permanent Attorney General.
This Week in Corruption: $1.1 Billion Crypto Haul, Secret $500M Contract, and a Kazakhstan Payday for The First Family
- Trump’s Financial Disclosure Reveals Over $1 Billion in Crypto Earnings: Trump’s annual financial disclosure, released this week, shows he earned more than $1.1 billion from cryptocurrency last year. That includes over $515 million from his family’s World Liberty Financial token sales, $65 million from selling equity in WLF’s holding company, and $635 million in royalties from a meme coin that launched days before his inauguration. The disclosure also revealed nearly $440,000 in gifts from foreign leaders and CEOs seeking his favor, including tickets from UFC’s Dana White and FIFA’s Gianni Infantino.
- White House Secretly Awarded $500 Million No-Bid Ballroom Contract: A Washington Post investigation found that White House officials secretly awarded a no-bid contract worth up to $500 million to Clark Construction for the East Wing ballroom. Trump personally negotiated cost terms, haggling over the price of concrete with a Clark subsidiary. The project’s cost has tripled since it was unveiled, from $200 million to $600 million, with taxpayers covering roughly half despite Trump’s repeated claims it would be entirely privately funded.
- Trump Bought Taser Manufacturer Stock Two Weeks Before ICE’s $220 Million Deal: On Feb. 10, Trump’s trust purchased between $1 million and $5 million in Axon Enterprise stock, just 14 days before ICE issued a $220 million solicitation for nearly 17,800 Tasers. Procurement reviewers say the specifications match only Axon’s product line. Axon shares jumped more than 34% in the week after the notice. The president’s trust invested in a company positioned to profit directly from his administration’s expanded immigration enforcement.
- Trump Sons Set to Profit From Federally Backed Kazakhstan Tungsten Deal: A New York Times investigation revealed that Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump acquired a 20% stake in a Kazakhstan tungsten mining project through Dominari Securities, just weeks after the Trump administration approved up to $1.6 billion in federal financing for it. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick’s sons, who run Cantor Fitzgerald, helped raise $210 million for an investor in the deal. Trump, Lutnick, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio were all personally involved in the negotiations. At least 14 companies tied to the Trump or Lutnick families are now working with the federal government on critical minerals projects worth a combined $8.9 billion.
- SpaceX in Talks to Donate Stock to Trump Accounts: The Trump administration has discussed with Elon Musk and SpaceX the possibility of donating company stock to “Trump Accounts,” the children’s savings program launching next week. Musk’s companies have received over $38 billion in government contracts, loans, subsidies, and tax credits since 2003. Since Trump returned to office, SpaceX alone has secured billions more, including a $4.16 billion Space Force satellite contract and a separate $2.29 billion military communications deal. Meanwhile, a Senate Homeland Security subcommittee found that Musk’s companies faced $2.37 billion in potential federal liabilities when Trump took office, many of which have since been paused or dismissed.
The pattern couldn’t be clearer: week after week, Trump and his allies treat the federal government as a tool for self-enrichment – burying accountability, rewarding friends with taxpayer money, and cutting deals that prioritize personal profit over national security. Want to follow and share these stories in real time? Follow Trump Affordability Campaign on X or Bluesky