Ethics experts and Democrats express alarm as Trump uses office to grow his personal fortune to ‘unprecedented’ level

Donald Trump’s use of his second presidency to grow his personal fortune has alarmed legal and ethics experts and congressional Democrats as he has reaped an “unprecedented” $2.2bn in 2025 revenues by amassing big cryptocurrency holdings, benefiting from wealthy foreign interests, expanding his Truth Social business and more, while federal oversight of his actions has waned.

Trump last year raked in at least $1.4bn from his crypto ventures according to financial disclosure forms he filed in June. Simultaneously, about one million investors in a Trump crypto scheme suffered almost $3.8bn in losses as their volatile crypto holdings tanked in value.

Monetizing his presidency further this summer, Trump’s Truth Social media business is pushing a new scheme that offers wealthy buyers special early access to his posts for a fee of $100,000 a month, which top Democrats and public interest groups say pose serious conflict of interest and corruption issues.

This is some of why at least some Americans probably wish the Iran plot succeeded

  • the_q@piefed.socialEnglish
    2·
    1 hour ago

    We could end this in a few weeks if we acted. Everyone wants to hold on to what little they have instead of losing it for a better future.

  • Jumi@lemmy.world
    72·
    3 hours ago

    Many Americans seem to be fine with that, must be some kind of national kink.

  • Optional@lemmy.world
    63·
    6 hours ago

    I mean . . . Yeah. We know. We’ve been watching it happen every goddamned day.

    Thanks for the reminder Guardian. Maybe you could name and shame a little more? It’s not happening magically. People with names and institutions are doing this corruption, so. Map it out. kthx.

  • leadore@lemmy.world
    12·
    5 hours ago

    And that $2.2B is just what he reported on his taxes–i.e. the technically legal income.

    • Madison420@lemmy.world
      4·
      3 hours ago

      Well yes and also it doesn’t include the money his family has made from deals made after he got office. It’s on the order of 5bil+.

    • jaaake@lemmy.world
      8·
      3 hours ago

      “Look at what a good businessman he is!”

      “If it was actually illegal, he’d be in prison!”

      “He’s so savvy to not pay for things when payment is due. Why would you pay if you didn’t have to?”

      “He’s made more money while president than any other president because he’s the first non-politician president.”

      • Malyca@lemmy.zip
        6·
        3 hours ago

        My personal favorite: “he donates his salary, that proves he isn’t in it to make money. That’s why we elected him!”

    • LifeInMultipleChoice@lemmy.dbzer0.comEnglish
      18·
      6 hours ago

      They believe that everyone does it, and that Trump is just better at it.

      That’s why if you point out something corrupt they point to someone else who the think did something corrupt, instead of saying both should be investigated and punished if actually guilty.

      • CharlesDarwin@lemmy.worldEnglish
        5·
        3 hours ago

        Exactly: “Hunter Biden and his laptop! And Hunter sold art, can you even believe it? Hillary’s emails! Bill Clinton gets speaking fees, how is that even possible?”

        • artyom@piefed.socialEnglish
          4·
          3 hours ago

          Lol remember when Hillary’s emails was this years-long scandal? And we just rolled over Signalgate in a couple weeks.

        • LifeInMultipleChoice@lemmy.dbzer0.comEnglish
          1·
          2 hours ago

          Yeah the problem I have with it is I can’t tell how many of them are just excusing peoples crimes because others commit crimes or excusing their crimes because they would do the same thing if they could, and point to others doing potentially other crimes as a “well anyone would do it” type of shit. ,

      • danc4498@lemmy.worldEnglish
        5·
        6 hours ago

        They only trust the news that reports the things they want to hear.

        I think there’s others that think the things he does for the country are good. And they take the good with the bad. Like lowering taxes (even though mostly the rich benefitted from that). Or whatever the fuck DOGE claimed to do. Or brain worm measles you.

  • lukaro@lemmy.zipEnglish
    131·
    6 hours ago

    Wishing tons of non viloent misfurtunes to happen to all republicans.

      • lukaro@lemmy.zipEnglish
        15·
        5 hours ago

        I’m talking stuff like having bad diarrhea and a sneezing fit while stuck in traffic. Or forever having one cent less than the purchase they’re trying to make. Getting comfortable in bed starting to drift off to sleep then suddenly having to piss. Every poop is a splasher. That kinda of stuff.

        • AbsolutelyNotAVelociraptor@piefed.socialEnglish
          16·
          5 hours ago

          And I’m talking about being confused for an inmigrant by ICE and consequently beaten/shot to death. Or involved in a violent arrest by the police and consequently beaten/shot to death, or simply caught in a road rage incident with a fellow republican nazi and consequently beaten/shot to death. That kinda stuff.

          • LostCarcosan@lemmy.today
            2·
            2 hours ago

            Or needing a simple yet life saving drug/procedure done but their insuranc refuses to pay for it and they die slowly and painfully. Or get hit by a car and break their neck leading them to live the rest of their ‘life’ unable to move or communicate

          • AbidanYre@lemmy.worldEnglish
            4·
            4 hours ago

            Or chased down and eaten by large reptiles? Not that you would know anything about that…

  • Assassassin@lemmy.dbzer0.com
    7·
    7 hours ago

    And what’s he even going to do with it? Dude is a walking caricature of American diet related health problems, in his 80s. Beyond the fact that so many groups would love to take a shot at him, he’s pretty likely to take himself out within the next few years anyway.

    So what’s the point of getting absurdly rich? You can’t take it with you, and he very obviously only cares about himself, so he isn’t doing it for his family.

    • Sunflier@lemmy.worldOPEnglish
      2·
      2 hours ago

      My guess?

      He’s looking to make his descendants so rich that they can become America’s royal family with the president he’s trying to set up combined with the effect that wealth has for buying the government.

    • artyom@piefed.socialEnglish
      1·
      3 hours ago

      I mean just look at what he’s doing with it now. What he’s always done with it. He wants literal monuments built to himself. He wants his name on absolutely everything. He wants a legacy.

    • resipsaloquitur@lemmy.cafeEnglish
      7·
      6 hours ago

      My father was a malignant narcissist.

      They do live through their children. Not in any sort of nice, generous way. But they try to clone themselves via their offspring. Look like me, follow in my professional footsteps, have the same opinions about everything.

    • skvlp@feddit.nl
      3·
      6 hours ago

      I think he’s talked about building a dynasty a few times, and that might be part of it. If he is the origin of a dynasty he probably thinks the world will se him as a god or some delulu shit. His interest in building monuments all over Washington also seem to paint a similar picture.

  • SeeMarkFly@lemmy.mlEnglish
    5·
    7 hours ago

    Now isn’t that funny? It cost MORE to make a rich person richer than it does to make me rich.

    Go figure.

  • weps@lemmy.world
    1·
    5 hours ago

    more than a billion in crypto and during the white house Tesla infomercial he said he only uses cheques and doesn’t use crypto