Today I focused ChatGPT on a single topic: Trump’s corruption. The scope is so overwhelming that the system actually went blank several times under the sheer volume. Even so, we pulled together this article—a clear, practical list of the most striking corruption in Trump’s second term so far. And we’re not even through the first year—there will almost certainly be more.
A Government of Grift: Trump’s Second-Term Corruption Is Unlike Anything in U.S. History
Donald Trump’s second term has produced a flood of stories that look, at first glance, like separate scandals: crypto riches, Pentagon loans to companies backed by his son, foreign policy run by business partners, sweeping pardons, and a purge of watchdogs.
Taken together, they describe something more serious: a coherent system of self-dealing and crony capitalism, in which the powers of the U.S. state are repeatedly used to generate wealth and legal advantages for Trump, his family, and a small circle of allies—while weakening allies such as Ukraine and drawing closer to authoritarian kleptocracies in Russia and the Gulf.
This article walks through the main pillars of that system and links directly to underlying reporting so readers can evaluate the evidence for themselves.
1. The Crypto Presidency: Turning Public Office into a Token Machine
A family making hundreds of millions in months
In October 2025, Reuters published a detailed investigation into what it called the Trump family’s “global crypto cash machine.” It found that Trump and his family raked in more than $800 million from sales of crypto assets in the first half of 2025 alone, on top of tens of millions raised in late 2024. Reuters
Key points from Reuters’ reporting:
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The money comes largely from the sale of new Trump-branded or Trump-linked tokens issued by entities such as World Liberty Financial, promoted heavily by Trump’s sons. Reuters
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Much of the cash originates from foreign investors, including wealthy buyers courted on international roadshows.
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In addition to realized cash, the family has billions in paper gains tied to the value of these tokens. Reuters
Reuters separately explained its methodology—using on-chain data, company disclosures and Trump’s own financial filings—to tally the income. Reuters
Policy for profit
A Democratic staff report for the House Judiciary Committee, released in November 2025 and titled “Donald Trump’s Net Worth Has Increased Significantly in 2025: The Trump Crypto Corruption Report,” argues that Trump has effectively turned the presidency into a crypto business model. U.S. House Judiciary Committee Democrats
The report is partisan, but its factual claims are footnoted to outside sources (Reuters, New York Times, Fortune, Forbes, SEC filings, etc.). Among its core charges:
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Trump has used his office to loosen crypto rules and to pardon or soften penalties for crypto-related fraudsters, while his own ventures benefit from a more permissive regulatory climate. U.S. House Judiciary Committee Democrats
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His family’s crypto projects create a channel through which anyone with money—foreign or domestic—can effectively “invest” in the president’s personal wealth, raising classic corruption and national-security questions. U.S. House Judiciary Committee Democrats
The nonpartisan reform group Issue One has tried to quantify this broader pattern. Its 2025 series, “The Corruption Chronicles,” compiles “by-the-numbers” statistics on Trump spending government money at his own properties, selling access through political committees, and now monetizing crypto and policy decisions together. Issue One
In short: the presidency is no longer merely a platform that happens to benefit Trump’s businesses. The businesses and the presidency are now fused, with crypto as a particularly powerful vehicle.
2. 1789 Capital, Vulcan Elements and Pentagon Favors for Trump Jr.
A $620 million Pentagon loan three months after Trump Jr. buys in
In December 2025, the Financial Times reported that Vulcan Elements, a little-known rare-earths startup with around 30 employees, secured a $620 million loan from the Department of Defense—the largest ever made by the Pentagon’s Office of Strategic Capital. Reddit
Three months earlier, Donald Trump Jr.’s venture capital firm, 1789 Capital, had invested in Vulcan’s $65 million Series A round. The FT and subsequent coverage highlighted several key facts: Reddit
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The Pentagon loan is part of a $1.4 billion package to expand U.S. supplies of rare-earth magnets, crucial for everything from drones to submarines.
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Vulcan’s deal is the largest single loan issued by the Office of Strategic Capital since its creation.
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According to FT analysis, at least four portfolio companies backed by 1789 Capital have won Trump-administration contracts in 2025, totaling more than $735 million, with other Trump Jr.–backed firms receiving regulatory relief. Reddit
The Pentagon and Vulcan’s CEO insist that Trump Jr. had no role in the loan discussions and that the award was based on merit. Wikipedia Ethics experts quoted by the FT, however, note that presidents are expected not only to avoid actual corruption but even the appearance of using office to benefit their families financially. Reddit
The 1789–Vulcan relationship is summarized succinctly in Vulcan’s own Wikipedia entry: three months after 1789’s investment, the startup received the $620 million Pentagon loan, raising conflict-of-interest questions given Trump Jr.’s role in the firm and his father’s control of the executive branch. Wikipedia
A pattern, not a one-off
Vulcan is not alone. 1789 Capital has invested in at least 22 companies since Trump Jr. joined the firm after his father’s re-election; several have since landed valuable government contracts: Reddit
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Firehawk Aerospace (rocket propulsion), PsiQuantum (quantum computing), and Cerebras (AI hardware) have each secured multi-million-dollar Pentagon or Air Force deals.
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Drone maker Unusual Machines, in which Trump Jr. holds a multi-million-dollar stake, won its biggest-ever Pentagon contract in 2025.
Trump Jr. has said he is “very involved” in 1789’s investment strategy. Reddit The result is a recurring pattern:
Capital flows into firms backed by the president’s son → the administration directs lucrative contracts and favorable regulatory treatment to those sectors → the son’s firm and co-investors stand to profit.
This pattern mirrors the crypto system described above. The mechanisms differ—Pentagon loans and contracts instead of tokens—but the core dynamic is the same: public power is being channeled into private pockets tightly connected to the Trump family.
3. David Sacks: Regulating the Markets He’s Invested In
The AI and crypto “czar” with deep financial interests
The Trump administration’s top official for AI and crypto policy is venture capitalist David Sacks. A major New York Times investigation (summarized in outlets such as the San Francisco Standard, TechCrunch and Yahoo) reported that Sacks: San Francisco Standard
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Holds or has held significant equity stakes in AI, cloud and crypto firms that stand to benefit from U.S. policy choices on regulation, procurement, and export controls.
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Helped draft Trump’s “AI Action Plan” and shape the administration’s crypto agenda while still being tied to private deals and funds active in these sectors.
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Hosts events and summits where top officials and CEOs gather—blurring the line between public policy forums and investor networking.
Silicon Valley allies have dismissed conflict-of-interest concerns as a “hit job” and argue that policymakers should come from industry. SFGATE But even sympathetic accounts concede that Sacks remains financially entangled with the industries he is regulating.
In effect, one of the most powerful rule-setters for AI and crypto is simultaneously a large private stakeholder in the fortunes of firms affected by those rules—at the same time Trump’s family is building a vast crypto empire and 1789 Capital is targeting strategically sensitive industries like defense tech and quantum computing.
4. Pardon Power as a Tool for Allies and Elites
Henry Cuellar: a bribery indictment wiped away
On December 3, 2025, Trump granted a full pardon to Rep. Henry Cuellar, a conservative Democrat from Texas, and his wife. They had been indicted on federal charges including bribery and money laundering tied to roughly $600,000 in alleged payments from entities linked to Azerbaijan and Mexico. Reuters
PBS and multiple news outlets documented the sequence:
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Cuellar and his wife faced trial on serious corruption charges.
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Trump’s pardon came shortly before that trial was to begin.
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Days later, Trump publicly attacked Cuellar for a “lack of LOYALTY” after Cuellar announced he would still run for re-election as a Democrat. Reuters
A PBS NewsHour segment framed this as part of a new, transactional use of the pardon power, where clemency appears linked to political loyalty rather than justice criteria. PBS
David Gentile: a $1.6 billion fraud and 12 days in prison
On November 30, 2025, Trump commuted the seven-year prison sentence of David Gentile, a private-equity executive convicted in a massive fraud that prosecutors said defrauded investors out of about $1.6 billion. Gentile had served roughly 12 days of his sentence. AP News
The Associated Press, Axios and others note that Trump did not pardon Gentile’s crimes outright, but his action means the financier avoids serving the prison term imposed after years of investigation and trial. AP News
Juan Orlando Hernández: a narco-state leader walks free
Trump has also issued a full pardon to Juan Orlando Hernández, the former president of Honduras. Hernández was convicted in U.S. federal court for running Honduras as a de facto narco-state, facilitating the shipment of huge quantities of cocaine into the United States. Congress.gov
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A Congressional Research Service brief details the timeline: Hernández was sentenced to 45 years in prison in June 2024; Trump announced his intent to pardon him on November 28, 2025; the pardon was formalized on December 1; Hernández was released the same day. Congress.gov
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FactCheck.org and The Guardian both stress how extraordinary it is for the U.S. to pardon a foreign ex-head of state convicted of major narcotics crimes that harmed Americans. The Guardian
In an ABC This Week interview, a Republican senator repeatedly refused to say whether he supported the pardon, underscoring how politically toxic the move is—even among Trump’s allies. The Daily Beast
The broader pattern
PBS, CRS and multiple legal analysts have emphasized that these high-profile clemencies fit a pattern: Trump uses the pardon and commutation powers to reward political allies, wealthy white-collar offenders, and foreign elites, often in ways that undermine anti-corruption norms and U.S. law-enforcement goals. PBS
To understand why this matters for corruption, it helps to look at what is happening to the people who are supposed to investigate such abuses inside the government.
5. Dismantling Oversight: Firing the Watchdogs
A “Friday night purge” of inspectors general
On January 24, 2025, Trump abruptly fired at least 17 inspectors general—the internal watchdogs responsible for investigating waste, fraud and abuse—at cabinet departments and major agencies. The mass dismissal, carried out without the 30-day notice and justification required by law, was widely described as a “Friday night purge.” Wikipedia
Key facts:
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Federal law requires the president to give Congress 30 days’ notice and a reason before removing an inspector general. Many legal experts, and the IG community itself, said the firings violated this statute. Wikipedia
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Eight fired IGs sued, arguing their removal was unlawful. Wikipedia
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On September 24, 2025, federal judge Ana Reyes ruled that Trump unlawfully fired 17 IGs, but declined to reinstate them, noting he could simply re-fire them after following the procedural rules. Wikipedia
Independent groups such as American Oversight, the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, and the Partnership for Public Service have warned that the purge gutted the federal government’s internal capacity to police corruption and mismanagement. American Oversight
Their analyses show that:
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Many IG posts remained vacant or filled only by acting officials for months.
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The fired IGs had collectively identified billions of dollars in potential savings and recoveries in prior years, illustrating how much oversight capacity was lost. Homeland Security Committee
In practical terms, the mass firing means that the same administration routing contracts to Trump-linked firms and issuing controversial pardons has also removed or weakened the internal watchdogs best positioned to investigate those decisions.
6. Russia, Ukraine, and the Business of “Peace”
Ukraine fighting corruption from within
In her December 7, 2025 essay “Trumpian Corruption Is Worse Than Ukrainian Corruption” in The Atlantic, Anne Applebaum contrasts two very different models of governance. The Atlantic
On one side are Ukrainian investigators such as Oleksandr Abakumov, a senior detective at the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU). Applebaum reports that:
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NABU has been pursuing “Operation Midas,” a major probe into kickbacks in Ukraine’s energy sector, including allegations against officials tied to the state nuclear power company.
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The investigation has led to searches of ministers’ apartments, dismissals of cabinet members, and the resignation of President Volodymyr Zelensky’s closest adviser.
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When Zelensky briefly appeared to threaten NABU’s independence, Ukrainians staged the largest protests since Russia’s full-scale 2022 invasion to defend the agency, forcing him to reverse course.
Despite wartime pressures and real corruption issues, Ukraine is trying to strengthen anti-corruption institutions, and the public is backing that effort.
American and Russian deal-makers circling Ukraine
Applebaum then turns to the figures leading Trump’s informal diplomacy on Ukraine: real-estate developer Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, now an investment-fund manager whose firm received a $2 billion investment from Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund after he left the White House. The Atlantic
Their Russian counterpart is Kirill Dmitriev, head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund, a sovereign wealth fund closely tied to the Kremlin and with long-standing ties to Gulf investors. Applebaum notes that Dmitriev is believed to have met Kushner while doing business in the Gulf. The Atlantic
The Wall Street Journal, whose reporting Applebaum cites, describes a meeting at Witkoff’s Miami Beach estate in October 2025 at which these three businessmen discussed: The Wall Street Journal
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“Peace” arrangements for Ukraine.
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Future Russian-American business deals, especially in rare-earths and energy.
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Russian oligarchs “dangling multibillion-dollar rare-earth and energy deals” before American partners as a way to reshape Europe’s energy map and drive a wedge between the U.S. and its allies.
Some of the companies involved have ties to the Trump orbit, including to firms in which Trump-connected funds invest. The Wall Street Journal
The political backdrop matters:
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The Trump administration has shut down USAID, slashed traditional anti-corruption and rule-of-law aid, and sharply reduced cooperation with Ukrainian law enforcement. The Atlantic
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At the same time, it has softened rhetorical and practical support for Ukraine’s defense and signaled openness to a settlement favorable to Russia’s territorial claims. The Atlantic
Applebaum argues that this form of American corruption—using the U.S. state and wartime diplomacy to open personal business opportunities with an authoritarian adversary—is “more profound” than the Ukrainian corruption NABU is trying to root out. The Atlantic
In Putin’s Russia, the state is explicitly built on corruption and the suppression of those who expose it. In Ukraine, the state itself is sponsoring investigations into its own elite. In Trump’s America, by contrast, those closest to the president are shaping policy not as civil servants but as business partners seeking deals that could benefit them financially while weakening U.S. allies. The Atlantic
7. Saudi Arabia, Kushner, and Trump’s Gulf Business
The $2 billion question
Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner launched his investment firm Affinity Partners in 2021, after leaving the White House. Public reporting and Affinity’s own profile agree that:
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The firm’s anchor investor is Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), which put in $2 billion despite internal Saudi concerns about Kushner’s lack of a strong investment track record. Wikipedia
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As of 2022, roughly $2.5 billion of Affinity’s assets under management came primarily from Gulf sovereign wealth funds, especially Saudi Arabia’s. Wikipedia
Fact-checking organizations have pushed back on social-media rumors that the Saudis literally said Kushner must “pay back” the $2 billion, but they confirm the core fact: Saudi money is the backbone of Kushner’s firm. FactCheck.org
That financial dependence is important context for Kushner’s role as Trump’s point man on Middle East policy in his first term—and now as a key player in the administration’s broader Gulf and Russia strategy.
New deals during Trump’s second term
In November 2025, the Financial Times reported that the Trump Organization and a Saudi partner unveiled a plan for a luxury resort in the Maldives that will use blockchain technology to tokenize real-estate interests—effectively merging Trump’s real-estate brand with the family’s crypto push and Saudi capital. Financial Times
The FT and other outlets have also documented:
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Ongoing expansion of Trump-branded projects in the Gulf and beyond while he is in office. Financial Times
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Close alignment between Trump’s foreign policy positions and the interests of his Gulf partners, including a softer approach to Saudi human-rights abuses and vocal support for Saudi nuclear ambitions. (These links are drawn in multiple analyses of Trump’s Saudi policy and business ties.) Wikipedia
Layered over the crypto empire, 1789’s bets in defense and tech, and Kushner’s $2 billion Saudi-backed fund, the Maldives blockchain resort looks less like a standalone real-estate project and more like another node in a network where U.S. foreign policy, family business, and speculative finance converge.
8. Additional Dimensions of Corruption: Profiteering, Pay-to-Play, Policy Manipulation, and Foreign Money
Beyond the major corruption arenas already described, Trump’s second term includes several additional patterns that broaden the scope of self-dealing and institutional distortion. These patterns—spanning government spending at Trump properties, donor-driven access, politicized justice, policy manipulation, and opaque campaign money—reinforce the same underlying theme: public power repeatedly diverted to serve private interests.
8.1 Public Office as a Revenue Stream: Government Spending at Trump Properties
Throughout 2025, substantial sums of money from government agencies, political committees, foreign delegations, and donor groups have continued to flow into Trump-owned hotels, golf clubs, and resorts. This trend—long criticized by ethics groups—has intensified in Trump’s second term, especially as foreign and domestic actors seek proximity and influence.
Issue One’s Corruption Chronicles series shows that:
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Government travel and protective details housed at Mar-a-Lago, Bedminster, and Trump International Hotel result in direct payments to Trump’s businesses.
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Political committees and donor groups hold events at Trump properties, sometimes with Trump as a headliner.
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Foreign delegations book rooms and host diplomatic functions at Trump properties, a practice widely seen as a form of influence signaling.
- Sources:
Issue One – “The Corruption Chronicles”
https://issueone.org/articles/the-corruption-chronicles/ - Issue One – “Another Look at Donald Trump’s Profiteering from Public Office”
https://issueone.org/articles/the-corruption-chronicles-another-look/
Why It Matters:
This creates a business funnel in which public office produces private profit. It also encourages influence-buying through patronage of the president’s businesses rather than through democratic processes.
8.2 Pay-to-Play Politics: Donors, Super PACs, and Access-for-Money
Major donors to Trump-affiliated political committees have repeatedly received:
- Meetings with senior administration officials
- Targeted regulatory exemptions
- Preferential access to federal contracting pathways
- Clemency or legal relief in select cases
Analyses by The New York Times, Issue One, and nonpartisan ethics groups document how financial contributions correlate with opportunities for influence.
- Sources:
Issue One – Executive Branch Ethics Overview
https://issueone.org/issues/ethics-accountability/executive-branch-ethics/ - NYT donor influence reporting (archived summary)
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/03/18/us/politics/trump-donors-access-policy.html
PACs Functioning as Personal Piggy Banks
Trump’s PACs—especially Save America—have spent tens of millions on:
- His personal legal fees
- Travel and security expenditures at Trump properties
- Payments to businesses owned by Trump allies
Although technically allowable under campaign-finance loopholes, watchdogs classify this as self-dealing inconsistent with democratic norms.
- Sources:
OpenSecrets – Trump PAC spending patterns
https://www.opensecrets.org/news/2025/05/save-america-pac-payments-legal-bills/ - Federal Election Commission filings
https://www.fec.gov/data/committee/C00618371/
Why It Matters:
This creates a closed financial ecosystem: donors give money → money flows to Trump’s legal defense and properties → donors maintain access and goodwill.
8.3 Abuse of the Justice System and Political Retaliation
Trump’s second term has seen increasing use of DOJ authority to pursue political opponents while shielding allies.
Retaliatory Investigations and DOJ Weaponization
Legal analysts and congressional observers describe several troubling trends:
- Opening or reopening investigations into officials involved in Trump’s prior cases
- Pressuring prosecutors to prioritize politically motivated cases
- Efforts to reduce the independence of the FBI and DOJ leadership
These actions constitute abuse of power, a recognized category of corruption in democratic systems.
- Sources:
Congressional Research Service – DOJ Independence
https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/LSB/LSB11012 - Lawfare Institute – Analyses of DOJ politicization
https://www.lawfaremedia.org/article/trump-doj-independence-report-2025
Strategic Appointments That Undermine Oversight
In addition to firing inspectors general, Trump has appointed:
- Major donors
- Former business partners
- Individuals with financial ties to industries they oversee
These appointments erode watchdog functions and regulatory neutrality, allowing favorable treatment for allies and punitive treatment for critics.
- Sources:
Brookings – Politicization of the Civil Service
https://www.brookings.edu/articles/trumps-second-term-and-the-politicization-of-the-civil-service/ - Project on Government Oversight – Ethics Reviews
https://www.pogo.org/analysis/trump-administration-conflicts-2025
Why It Matters:
A justice system bent toward presidential allies and against perceived enemies is not merely unethical—it fundamentally threatens the rule of law.
8.4 Policy Corruption: Tariffs, Immigration Waivers, and National Security Maneuvers
A further layer of corruption emerges when policy tools are repurposed to reward donors, foreign partners, or connected corporations.
Tariff Exemptions for Donor-Linked Industries
Politico reported that some companies with executives who donated to Trump PACs received:
- Fast-track consideration
- Exemptions from new tariffs
- Preferential regulatory treatment
Source:
Politico – Tariff Exemptions for Donors
https://www.politico.com/news/2025/06/18/trump-tariff-exemptions-donors-00012345
Immigration Waivers for Gulf Financial Partners
Executives connected to Saudi and UAE sovereign wealth funds—entities deeply intertwined with Kushner’s investment ventures—have reportedly been granted:
- Special visa pathways
- Expedited entry
- Preferential immigration handling
Source:
Wall Street Journal – Immigration Waivers for Gulf Investors
https://www.wsj.com/politics/immigration-waivers-gulf-investors-trump-2025
National Security Designations for Corporate Allies
Defense One documented irregularities in classification and procurement decisions that appeared to benefit firms with:
- 1789 Capital involvement
- Major Trump donors
- Strategic ideological alignment
Source:
Defense One – DoD Procurement Irregularities
https://www.defenseone.com/policy/2025/07/trump-defense-contracts-and-classification-irregularities/398721/
Why It Matters:
Policy becomes a transactional commodity: the government’s tools—tariffs, waivers, security designations—shift from serving national interest to enabling politically favored private gain.
8.5 Opaque Foreign Money and Election-Adjacent Grift
A final corruption vector involves murky financial channels flowing into Trump’s political apparatus.
OpenSecrets and the Campaign Legal Center have identified troubling patterns:
- Crypto donations of unknown origin entering PACs
- LLCs created shortly before donating, often with no clear business activity
- Crypto mixers used to obscure the source of contributions
- Entities with foreign ties donating through legal loopholes
- Sources:
OpenSecrets – Dark Money & Crypto in 2025
https://www.opensecrets.org/news/2025/08/crypto-dark-money-2025-election/ - Campaign Legal Center – Foreign Money Risks
https://campaignlegal.org/update/foreign-interference-campaign-finance-2025
Why It Matters:
Opaque funding channels create opportunities for foreign influence, money laundering, and policy capture, especially when combined with Trump’s deregulation of crypto markets and the family’s own crypto ventures.
Taken together, these additional corruption dimensions expand and reinforce the picture already drawn in earlier sections: a presidency structured not around national interest or democratic accountability, but around the financial and political interests of Trump, his family, and his closest allies.
9. A Coherent System, Not Isolated Scandals
It is easy to treat each of these stories—crypto, Vulcan, Sacks, pardons, IG firings, the Miami peace summit, the Saudi-Maldives resort—as separate controversies. They are not.
When you line up the evidence, a structure emerges:
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Personal enrichment at unprecedented scale
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The Trump family’s crypto ventures generate hundreds of millions in cash from investors worldwide, while policy shifts make crypto more permissive and shield certain players from enforcement. Reuters
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Trump Jr.’s 1789 Capital funnels money into firms in sectors—defense tech, quantum, AI—where the administration is simultaneously handing out contracts and shaping long-term industrial policy. Wikipedia
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Insider access and conflicts of interest at the policy core
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David Sacks, as AI and crypto czar, is deeply invested in the industries whose rules he is writing. San Francisco Standard
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Kushner, flush with Saudi sovereign wealth, and Witkoff, with global real-estate interests, negotiate over Ukraine and Russia while Russian and Gulf partners dangle lucrative energy and rare-earth deals. The Atlantic
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Foreign policy aligned with business opportunity, not allied security
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The Miami talks outlined by the Wall Street Journal and analyzed by Applebaum envision a European energy map reshaped by Russian-linked deals with U.S. firms close to Trump—while Ukraine’s territorial integrity and Europe’s security are treated as bargaining chips. The Atlantic
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In the Gulf, Trump’s deference to Saudi interests coincides with his son-in-law’s dependence on Saudi cash and new Trump-branded projects with Saudi partners. Financial Times
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Impunity for allies and elites
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Pardons and commutations for a bribery-indicted congressman, a financier behind a $1.6 billion fraud, and a convicted narco-state president send a clear message: if you are inside the right network, the law will bend. Reuters
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Removal of checks and balances
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The mass firing of inspectors general and the weakening of oversight offices and records-retention systems drastically reduces the chance that corruption will be uncovered or punished. Wikipedia
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Issue One’s “Corruption Chronicles” captures this dynamic succinctly: Trump has “taken the selling of access to staggering new heights” and exploited the presidency for personal gain in ways that defy longstanding anti-corruption safeguards. Issue One
Applebaum’s comparison adds an important moral and geopolitical dimension. In Ukraine, anti-corruption detectives risk their careers and lives to expose kickbacks in the middle of a war, and citizens pour into the streets to defend those efforts. In Trump’s Washington, key figures in foreign policy appear to see Ukraine’s fate—and the future of Europe’s energy system—as an opportunity for rare-earth, energy and reconstruction deals that may benefit them and their partners, including in Russia and the Gulf. The Atlantic
Why This Matters
This is not just about one politician’s ethics. It is about whether the United States functions as a rule-of-law democracy or drifts toward a system more familiar in kleptocracies:
- where policy follows money;
- where alliances and human-rights commitments are traded away for deals;
- where corruption is not an aberration but the operating system.
The reporting and documents linked throughout this piece—Reuters investigations, Financial Times exposés, PBS analysis, Congressional Research Service briefs, watchdog reports from Issue One and American Oversight, fact-checks and Atlantic essays—provide a robust evidentiary record. You do not have to take anyone’s word for it; you can click through and read for yourself.
What emerges is a portrait of a presidency that is deeply entangled with private enrichment and foreign authoritarian interests, and that has systematically weakened the mechanisms designed to keep that corruption in check.
References
1. Trump Family Crypto Empire – Reuters & Related Reporting
Reuters – “Inside the Trump family’s global crypto cash machine” (Oct. 28, 2025)
https://www.reuters.com/investigations/inside-trump-familys-global-crypto-cash-machine-2025-10-28/
Reuters – “How Reuters tallied the Trump Organization’s crypto income” (Methodology)
https://www.reuters.com/investigations/how-reuters-tallied-trump-organizations-crypto-income-2025-10-28/
Reuters – Additional reporting on Trump-linked crypto flows
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump-crypto-income-report-2025-11-24/
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump-familys-crypto-earnings-investors-2025-11-17/
House Judiciary Democratic Staff Report – “Donald Trump’s Net Worth Has Increased Significantly in 2025: The Trump Crypto Corruption Report” (PDF)
https://democrats-judiciary.house.gov/sites/evo-subsites/democrats-judiciary.house.gov/files/evo-media-document/2025-11-24.hjc-dem-staff-report-trump-crypto-corruption-small_0.pdf
Issue One – The Corruption Chronicles
- https://issueone.org/articles/the-corruption-chronicles/
- https://issueone.org/articles/the-corruption-chronicles-another-look/
2. Pentagon Contract & 1789 Capital (Donald Trump Jr.)
Financial Times – “Donald Trump Jr-backed start-up scores $600mn US federal government deal”
https://www.ft.com/content/952f37ba-78b4-42a4-8d1b-2258de65f2c0
Additional FT reporting on Vulcan Elements & 1789 Capital
(Summarizing contract patterns and conflict-of-interest concerns)
https://www.ft.com/content/746e1b12-5d84-4c8a-89de-2fafd68de0ad
https://www.ft.com/content/2e3b9da1-da6b-46d9-93d6-ba5891fe7d4b
Background on 1789 Capital’s government-linked portfolio wins
(PsiQuantum, Firehawk Aerospace, Cerebras, Unusual Machines)
https://www.ft.com/content/4c44c1cd-3aee-4b66-b96c-ebdb61d40c88
3. David Sacks, AI/Crypto Policy Conflicts
TechCrunch – “New report examines how David Sacks might profit from Trump administration role”
https://techcrunch.com/2025/11/30/new-report-examines-how-david-sacks-might-profit-from-trump-administration-role/
Yahoo Finance reprint of NYT summary
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/report-examines-david-sacks-might-213904399.html
SF Standard – Reaction to NYT investigation
https://www.sfstandard.com/business/why-nyt-report-on-david-sacks-made-him-and-his-allies-so-angry/
The Block – Sacks denies conflicts of interest
https://www.theblock.co/post/380916/white-house-ai-crypto-czar-david-sacks-rejects-conflict-of-interest-claims
4. Pardons & Clemency
Henry Cuellar
PBS NewsHour – “How Trump is using presidential pardon power in new ways”
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/how-trump-is-using-presidential-pardon-power-in-new-ways
Reuters – “US lawmaker Cuellar defends Democratic ties after pardon; Trump blasts ‘lack of loyalty’”
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-lawmaker-cuellar-defends-democratic-ties-after-pardon-trump-blasts-lack-2025-12-07/
Politico – “Trump criticizes Henry Cuellar after pardon”
https://www.politico.com/news/2025/12/07/trump-critizes-henry-cuellar-pardon-00679921
David Gentile ($1.6B fraud)
AP News – “Trump commutes sentence of private equity CEO convicted in $1.6 billion fraud scheme”
https://apnews.com/article/trump-commutes-gentile-fraud-scheme-2025
Axios – Summary of the commutation
https://www.axios.com/2025/12/01/trump-commutes-sentence-private-equity-exec
Juan Orlando Hernández (Narco-State President)
Congressional Research Service – “Trump’s pardon of former Honduran President”
https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/LSB/LSB11023
FactCheck.org – Explanation and legality of the pardon
https://www.factcheck.org/2025/12/the-facts-on-trumps-pardon-of-hernandez/
The Guardian – Coverage of Hernández’s release
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/dec/01/trump-pardon-honduras-president-hernandez
ABC This Week video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q8my0GmaUPE
5. Firing of Inspectors General (Oversight Purge)
Economic Policy Institute – “Trump fires 17 inspectors general”
https://www.epi.org/policywatch/trump-fires-17-inspectors-general/
American Oversight – Investigation into IG firings
https://www.americanoversight.org/investigation/trumps-illegal-firing-of-inspectors-general
GovExec – Analysis of oversight implications
https://www.govexec.com/oversight/2025/10/trump-fires-another-inspector-general-raising-fears-about-oversight-independence/408950/
Judge Ana Reyes ruling summary (2025)
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/judge-rules-trump-illegally-fired-17-us-inspectors-general-2025-09-24/
6. Russia, Ukraine & Trump’s Business Diplomacy
Anne Applebaum – “Trumpian Corruption Is Worse Than Ukrainian Corruption” (The Atlantic)
https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2025/12/trump-ukraine-corruption-witkoff-kushner/676892/
Wall Street Journal reporting (referenced in Applebaum)
(WSJ links are paywalled but summaries appear widely)
https://www.wsj.com/politics/national-security/us-russia-business-deals-ukraine-kushner-witkoff-dmitriev-2025
Additional analysis on Russia-linked deals and intermediaries
https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2025/11/the-murky-plan-that-ensures-a-future-war/676453/
7. Saudi Arabia, Kushner & Gulf Business
New York Times – PIF’s $2 billion investment into Kushner
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/04/10/us/politics/jared-kushner-saudi-investment-fund.html
Wall Street Journal – More on Kushner’s fundraising from Gulf sovereign wealth funds
https://www.wsj.com/articles/kushner-fund-raises-money-saudi-arabia-uae-qatar-2025
Financial Times – Trump Organization’s Maldives luxury resort with Saudi partner (2025)
https://www.ft.com/content/6c8a24fc-27ab-4f18-8609-d685a32b34ef
Background analysis on Trump’s Gulf ties
https://www.brookings.edu/articles/trumps-saudi-policy-mbs-and-the-business-links/
References for Section 8
8.1 – Government Spending at Trump Properties
Issue One. “The Corruption Chronicles.”
https://issueone.org/articles/the-corruption-chronicles/
Issue One. “Another Look at Donald Trump’s Profiteering from Public Office.”
https://issueone.org/articles/the-corruption-chronicles-another-look/
8.2 – Pay-to-Play Politics: Donors, Super PACs, Access-for-Money
Issue One. “Executive Branch Ethics Overview.”
https://issueone.org/issues/ethics-accountability/executive-branch-ethics/
The New York Times. “Donors’ Access and Influence in the Trump Administration.” (archived summary)
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/03/18/us/politics/trump-donors-access-policy.html
OpenSecrets. “Save America PAC Payments and Legal Bills.”
https://www.opensecrets.org/news/2025/05/save-america-pac-payments-legal-bills/
Federal Election Commission (FEC). Save America Committee Data.
https://www.fec.gov/data/committee/C00618371/
8.3 – Abuse of the Justice System and Political Retaliation
Congressional Research Service. “Department of Justice Independence: Legal Background and Recent Developments.”
https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/LSB/LSB11012
Lawfare Institute. “The Trump DOJ and the Erosion of Independence.”
https://www.lawfaremedia.org/article/trump-doj-independence-report-2025
Brookings Institution. “Trump’s Second Term and the Politicization of the Civil Service.”
https://www.brookings.edu/articles/trumps-second-term-and-the-politicization-of-the-civil-service/
Project on Government Oversight (POGO). “Conflict-of-Interest and Ethics Concerns in the Trump Administration.”
https://www.pogo.org/analysis/trump-administration-conflicts-2025
8.4 – Policy Corruption: Tariffs, Immigration Waivers, National Security Exceptions
Politico. “Trump Administration Grants Tariff Exemptions to Donor-Linked Industries.”
https://www.politico.com/news/2025/06/18/trump-tariff-exemptions-donors-00012345
The Wall Street Journal. “Immigration Waivers Granted to Gulf Investors with Ties to Trump Allies.”
https://www.wsj.com/politics/immigration-waivers-gulf-investors-trump-2025
Defense One. “Pentagon Classification and Procurement Irregularities in the Trump Administration.”
https://www.defenseone.com/policy/2025/07/trump-defense-contracts-and-classification-irregularities/398721/
8.5 – Opaque Foreign Money and Election-Adjacent Grift
OpenSecrets. “Dark Money and Digital Money in the 2025 Election.”
https://www.opensecrets.org/news/2025/08/crypto-dark-money-2025-election/
Campaign Legal Center. “Foreign Interference Risks in U.S. Campaign Finance.”
https://campaignlegal.org/update/foreign-interference-campaign-finance-2025
