Recent presidents waited until they became private citizens to make millions of dollars from their presidency. The general principle while serving in public office is to avoid even the appearance of impropriety. After leaving office it is a different story. In Washington it is called “ Doing good then doing well”. For example the Clintons were technically in debt when they left the White House due to Bill’s legal expenses. Now their net worth is estimated at $120 million derived mostly from book sales and speeches The Obamas post-presidency net worth is estimated at $70 million.
This column is about President Donald Trump. He is benefiting financially from the power and celebrity status of his presidency while still in office. According to CBS news, Donald Trump has increased his family wealth by at least two billion dollars in the last six months.
Much of the money Trump makes is based on crypto currency, a digital currency manufactured by private entities outside of government regulation. Crypto trades through a private, decentralized system. Crypto’s value depends on people or organizations demand for having it. Unlike national currencies, crypto is not backed by any government . According to the latest Wharton School’s Consumer Crypto Currency Confidence Report, “ Confidence in crypto continues to grow.” . There are several brands of crypto available for purchase. The crypto currency bitcoin has traded recently at about one hundred thousand dollars per coin. Most crypto sells for far less and the prices for any crypto can change quickly.
$TRUMP Meme Coin is a crypto currency issued by our president . In April its website invited the top 220 holder of the digital coin to “ an intimate private dinner” with the president. The top 25 will get a bonus: “ an Exclusive Reception before dinner with YOUR FAVORITE PRESIDENT” .The top 25 investors in the Trump meme coin were promised “an ultra-VIP experience that includes a private reception with the president and a guided White House tour.
According to block chain analytics platform Nansen, the top 100 holders of the presidential meme coin increased their holdings by around 940,000 tokens within just one hour. According to Finance Magnates magazine and other crypto- trackers the $TRUMP meme coin added more than $100 million overall to its value.
In most cases it is extremely difficult to know who bought the $TRUMP. However, according to Fintech Weekly the person heading the leader board was Justin Sun with a purchase of $18 million. According to TRM Labs, a crypto analytics firm, Sun’s blocktrain platform Tron was responsible for 58% of the illicit activity in the crypto world.
Trump makes money off the trading because the transactions generate a fee, as well as from the increase in price for the coins that results from his promoting or enticing sales. Of special concern is that the opaque nature of crypto transactions makes it virtually impossible to determine how much Trump is profiting , who is seeking to influence government policy and what policy favors they are seeking .
Melania Trump our First Lady, is receiving millions of dollars for a documentary film about herself. It was originally purchased by Netflix and subsequently purchased by Amazon for $40 million. According to Variety magazine, Ted Sarandos, co-CEO of Netflix, met with then president-elect Donald Trump for dinner in Mar-a- Lago. Sarandos denies that Trump pitched him on buying the documentary. However, the main investors in Netflix are huge investment funds ( Vanguard Group, Blackrock, FMR) which are subject to regulation by our federal government. Amazon is vulnerable to anti-trust prosecution.
The $TRUMP meme coin is only one of several methods the mega-rich and foreign governments use to enrich our president. No matter what the method is they are seeking to influence government policy. Tariff relief is one possible area . Trump has imposed by Executive Order heavy tariffs on most of the world. That hurts importers who are the ones one actually pay the tariff. If they increase prices they charge they risk losing consumers. Exporters face a challenge because other countries have imposed retaliatory tariffs on the US. That reduces export markets. Therefore influencing favorable tariff treatment is a major win for businesses. The federal government’s regulatory power is another area of concern. If your business is out of favor with Trump the federal government may invoke regulations inimical to your interests. The government can look the other way if you are in Trump’s good graces.
Those who are seeking to influence government policy by enriching our president are already rich and powerful. They want more of both. Some average citizens might be willing to do something similar if they had the money. However most of those citizens would want the president to restore federal funding for institutes and programs that actually benefit the American people.