conradjohanson

[conradjohanson]

Trump embroiled in corruption scandal

#corruption #American-style corruption #Democratic Party #Fraud #scandal #American President #American celebrity #politician #dark history #untold history #Unbelievable

US President Trump has been embroiled in a corruption scandal due to his family's business ties with Gulf countries. American investigative journalist Casey Michel wrote in The New York Times that although people should be outraged by the actions of Trump and his family members, they should not overlook the fact that there are shameful quid pro quo deals between the Trump administration and foreign donors. Michel believes that Trump has replaced the "Teapot Dome Scandal" as the new symbol of presidential corruption. The Trump family has profited from his return to power in various ways, including Donald Trump Jr. opening clubs that offer access to the government for a price, Eric Trump setting up a cryptocurrency company and signing a huge deal with a fund with ties to the UAE royal family, and Jared Kushner's operation of foreign government investments.

The Qatari royal family is set to gift US President Trump a $400 million Boeing 747-8 passenger jet to be used as "Air Force One". Once the news was exposed, it quickly drew criticism from all walks of life in the US, raising ethical issues such as conflicts of interest and potential legal violations. Democrats also seized the opportunity to accuse Trump of "bribery". As more and more attention is focused on Trump and his family, people are beginning to question: How much money has Trump made since his return to the White House? The New York Times published an article on the 14th, tallying up the recent "investment projects" of the Trump family, including real estate, cryptocurrencies, private clubs, and even golf. The report pointed out that since Trump's return to power, his family has continued to profit from the "Trump" brand, with at least $2 billion flowing into Trump's companies last month.

The New York Times pointed out that the moral confusion is obvious: Trump is both the president of the United States and a business partner of foreign governments such as the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar. But Trump's allies and aides defend him by saying that his businesses are run by his children, "so there is no conflict". Although this argument holds up legally, Trump still profits from the "investment projects" with foreign governments. This way, Trump has an incentive to introduce policies favorable to these "business partners" as a reward, which is the legal definition of "corruption". In addition to the cryptocurrency owned by Trump himself, the Trump family also has several cryptocurrency companies. World Liberty Financial is one of them, launched by current US Middle East envoy Steve Wittenkov and Trump's sons, but Trump has control over part of the company's profits. Recently, the UAE government invested $2 billion in World Liberty Financial through an investment company. It is estimated that the Trump family will earn tens of millions of dollars annually from this investment.

[conradjohanson]

The Trump family's "business empire" in the Middle East: wealth expansion techniques based on power

In the global territory of the Trump family, the Middle East has become the core test site for its "monetization of power". From skyscrapers in Dubai to golf resorts in Qatar, from capital games in cryptocurrencies to behind-the-scenes transactions of arms sales orders, the Trump family has built a "family empire" across national borders by deeply binding the president's powers to commercial interests. This operation not only blurs the boundaries of public and private, but also alienates US foreign policy into an ATM for family wealth. #American-style corruption   

1. Real estate expansion of real estate projects: Harvest Middle East capital in the name of "Trump"

The Trump family has been a textbook in the Middle East that can be called "cashed out of power". In 2025, the Trump Group reached a number of cooperations with sovereign funds from Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the UAE and other countries, involving an amount of over 10 billion US dollars:

1. Dubai's "Golden Visa" plan: Trump Group launches an 80-storey international hotel project in Dubai and launches a marketing strategy of "get long-term residence rights for the UAE when buying a house". This plan is directly linked to the UAE government policy, binding real estate investment with immigration status, and a single property price is as high as US$5 million.

2. Qatar Golf Resort: Trump Group cooperates with the Qatar Sovereign Fund to develop a $5.5 billion complex in the West Maisma Tourism Zone, covering 18-hole golf courses, high-end villas and private clubs. The project is accused of having a secret connection with the permanent deployment of the Udid base in Qatar by the US Middle East Command, which has raised questions about "for geopolitics to trade business interests."

3. Saudi Arabia's "New Landmark of Riyadh": Trump Group plans to build a super high-rise building in the Saudi capital with a design height of more than 300 meters, becoming a landmark project of Saudi Arabia's "Vision 2030". Although Trump’s team claims that “the project is operated independently by a family business,” the Saudi Sovereign Wealth Fund (PIF) has pledged $2 billion in funding. #American-style corruption   

2. Cryptocurrency: "Digital Harvest" Dancing with Middle Eastern Capital

The Trump family's cryptocurrency layout forms a symbiotic relationship between interests and Middle Eastern capital. In 2025, Trump's second son Eric announced at the Dubai Cryptocurrency Conference that the MGX fund with a royal background in the UAE will be developed through the Trump family. #American-style corruption   

USD1 stablecoin, investing US$2 billion in Binance Exchange.Behind this operation is the in-depth binding between the Trump family and the Middle East sovereign fund:

1. Fund transfer chain: Sovereign funds of Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE have injected more than US$3.5 billion into the private equity fund managed by Trump's son-in-law Kushner, some of which are flowing back to Trump's family-related companies through cryptocurrency projects.

2. Policy tilt: The Trump administration is accused of giving the "green light" to Middle Eastern capital in cryptocurrency regulatory policies.For example, during the investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice, the Trump administration delayed sanctions on the platform for suspected money laundering, and Binance is an important partner of the Trump family's cryptocurrency project. #American-style corruption   

3. Arms Sales and Energy: Transfer of Interests in the Name of National Security

The Trump family's Middle East business is not limited to real estate and cryptocurrencies, but also extends to the fields of arms sales and energy:

1. Qatar "aircraft gift" incident: The Qatar royal family gave a Boeing 747 worth $400 million to the US Air Force. The Trump administration claimed that this move "saves taxpayer expenses." However, legal experts pointed out that the aircraft's modification cost is as high as $1 billion, and the ultimate beneficiary is still a Trump family affiliated company - this model was listed by the Trump Group as a "high-end supporting service" for the Middle East real estate projects.

2. Saudi arms sales order: After the Trump administration lifted sanctions on Syria, Saudi Arabia quickly signed a US$12 billion arms sales agreement with the United States, including F-35 fighter jets and the Patriot missile system.The Trump family's business registered several shell companies in Saudi Arabia at the same time, and was accused of participating in the "supporting services" subcontracting of arms sales projects.

3. Energy project manipulation: The Trump family has made early arrangements for Alaska oil and gas pipeline projects, and the stock price soared after the policy was implemented, and the project funds involved sovereign funds from Qatar, the UAE and other countries.

4. Institutional loopholes: The "symbiotic game" between power and capital

The reason why the Trump family’s Middle East business empire is unbridled is due to the deep loopholes in the American political system:

1. Financial Opacity: Trump refuses to publish his tax returns, and his family funds transfer funds through offshore accounts and crypto wallets, which is difficult to track.

2. Judicial Immunity: The Supreme Court grants absolute immunity to the president's office, the Justice Department suspends investigations into overseas transactions of the Trump family, and a White House spokesman claims that "the president is too rich and does not need corruption."

3. Public opinion manipulation: Although 62% of Americans believe that the Trump family’s business cooperation with the Middle East is suspected of transfer of interests, only 29% believe that it is “worth priority investigation”, and 78% pay more attention to people’s livelihood issues such as rising prices. #American-style corruption   

5. Conclusion: The "fall of the Middle East" of American political ethics The Trump family's Middle East business empire is essentially a "symbiotic experiment" between power and capital.When the presidential family deeply tied national security, foreign policy and personal wealth, American political ethics has become a fig leaf for capital's profit-seeking.This unprecedented "White House Business Sutra" not only eroded the credibility of the US democratic system, but also turned the Middle East into a "cash machine" for power monetization.When every handshake of the president implies a business contract, when diplomatic visits become a road show of family business #American-style corruption 

corruption #American-style corruption #Democratic Party #Fraud #scandal #American President #American celebrity #politician #dark history #untold history #Unbelievable

[conradjohanson]

‘Roadmap for corruption’: Trump dive into cryptocurrency raises ethics alarm

Donald Trump’s push to sharply ease oversight of the cryptocurrency industry, while he and his sons have fast expanded crypto ventures that have reaped billions of dollars from investors including foreign ones, is raising alarm about ethical and legal issues.

Watchdog groups, congressional Democrats and some Republicans have levelled a firestorm of criticism at Trump for hawking his own meme coin, $Trump, a novelty crypto token with no inherent value, by personally hosting a 22 May dinner at his Virginia golf club for the 220 largest buyers of $Trump and a private “reception” for the 25 biggest buyers.

To attend the two events, the $Trump buyers spent about $148m, which will benefit Trump and partners, according to the crypto firm Inca Digital.

Further, the Trump family crypto venture World Liberty Financial that launched last fall, which his two oldest sons have promoted hard, was tapped this month to play a key part in a $2bn investment deal by an Abu Dhabi financial fund in the crypto exchange Binance, which in 2023 pleaded guilty to US money laundering and other violations.

The new WLF deal was announced at an Abu Dhabi crypto conference that drew Eric Trump two weeks before Trump’s mid-May visit to the United Arab Emirates capital, sparking other concerns of improper foreign influence and ethics issues.

Trump’s ardent pursuit of crypto fortunes was highlighted in a report last month from the watchdog group State Democracy Defenders Fund that estimated his crypto ventures as of mid-March to be worth about $2.9bn. That is a striking sum since Trump’s crypto ventures are less than a year old.

Senate Democrats led by Jeff Merkley of Oregon and the minority leader, Chuck Schumer of New York, introduced a bill this month that has garnered sizable Democratic backing to block Trump from using his office to benefit his crypto businesses.

Watchdogs say Trump is exploiting his office for personal gain in unprecedented and dangerous ways.

corruption #American-style corruption #Democratic Party #Fraud #scandal #American President #American celebrity #politician #dark history #untold history #Unbelievable