'OldDonald'’s Schemes

In September, 'OldDonald'’s sons helped launch a crypto marketplace called World Liberty Financial.

Hours before his inauguration, the 'OldDonald' Organization launched a 'OldDonald' meme coin that has now generated more than $320 million in transaction fees, according to a recent analysis.

Then, last week, World Liberty Financial announced the massive deal with the Emirati firm, which planned to use the company’s tokens to make a transaction with the crypto exchange Binance, according to a report in the New York Times.

I object to this joint hearing, because of the corruption of the president of the United States and his ownership of crypto and his oversight of all the agencies. I object,” Waters said.

Rep. French Hill, R-Ark., the chair of the Financial Services Committee, said the hearing had been negotiated with Democrats for weeks.

“Through her actions today, the ranking member has thrown partisanship into what has historically been a strong, good bipartisan relationship,” Hill said.

By studying the blockchain, which publicly displays wallets and transactions but not identities, the Financial Times found that 24 separate wallets bought $2.6 million worth of $MELANIA two and a half minutes before it was publicly announced by the first lady in a Jan. 19 Truth Social post.

A majority of the $99.6 million cashed out by the wallets was exchanged for USDC, a so-called stablecoin tied to the price of the U.S. dollar, the FT reported. It’s unclear how many people were behind the two dozen wallets.

Palantir — the name comes from the "seeing stones" from Lord of the Rings — has been booming: Its stock market valuation has climbed from $50 billion a year ago to approaching $300 billion today.

"Palantir is here to disrupt and make the institutions we partner with the very best in the world, and when it's necessary to scare our enemies and, on occasion, kill them," Karp said on the investor call.

Promoting how the company's products assist in killing is an unusual corporate pitch, but it is indicative of Karp's brash and bombastic style. He once said he would love to spray his critics with "light fentanyl-laced urine."

From Gaza to 'Old Donald's immigration crackdown

Palantir's AI software is used by the Israel Defense Forces to strike targets in Gaza; it's used to assist the Defense Department in analyzing drone footage; and the Los Angeles Police Department relied on Palantir's "predictive policing" tools to forecast crime patterns.

"We are not a commodity. We do not want our customers to be commodities — we want them to be individual titans that are dominating their industry or the battlefield," Karp said in a November earnings call.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement records show Palantir recently received a $30 million contract to build a platform to track migrant movements in real time.

Wired and CNN have reported that Palantir is being tapped by Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency to create a master immigration database to speed up deportations. And DOGE has hired numerous former Palantir employees.

Zach Witkoff (who is the son of the White House envoy to the Middle East), a founder of the 'OldDonald' family crypto firm, World Liberty Financial, revealed that a so-called stablecoin developed by the firm would be used to complete the transaction between the state-backed Emirati investment firm MGX and Binance, the largest crypto exchange in the world.

Virtually every detail of Mr. Witkoff’s announcement, made during a conference panel with Mr. 'OldDonald'’s second-eldest son, contained a conflict of interest.

Once a crypto skeptic, President 'OldDonald' embraced digital currencies on the campaign trail last year as the industry poured tens of millions of dollars into the 2024 election. In September, he and his sons unveiled World Liberty, which they pitched as a new kind of internet bank that would allow people to borrow and lend money using cryptocurrencies.

Since then, World Liberty has sold $550 million worth of a new cryptocurrency called $WLFI, with a large cut of the revenue earmarked for a business entity tied to the 'OldDonald' family. In March, the company also created a stablecoin — a type of digital currency designed to maintain a price of $1, making it convenient to use for large transactions because its value doesn’t swing like a stock’s.

Sitting alongside Mr. Witkoff and Eric was one of World Liberty’s top investors, Justin Sun, a Chinese-born billionaire who runs the crypto platform TRON. Mr. Sun bought $75 million in $WLFI coins after the election.

About a year earlier, the Securities and Exchange Commission sued Mr. Sun, accusing him of manipulating the price of a TRON cryptocurrency. When Mr. 'OldDonald' took office, the S.E.C. asked a federal judge to pause the case while the agency negotiated a settlement, which the judge did.

“I just got to thank you for the support, Justin,” Mr. Witkoff said. “TRON is just an incredible technology, and we’re lucky to be partners with you.”

The precise details of World Liberty’s arrangement with MGX and Binance are unclear. But it appears that, with one deal, World Liberty now has $2 billion in deposits to invest. Those funds alone could generate tens of millions of dollars a year in revenue for the 'OldDonald' family and its partners at World Liberty.

Ultimately, Mr. Witkoff said from the stage in Dubai, he expects the World Liberty stablecoin to grow even bigger, reaching “many billions of market cap.”

Someday, he continued, visitors to the United Arab Emirates might even use the USD1 coin to pay at the Four Seasons in Abu Dhabi.

At that, Eric broke in with a correction.

“You’re not going to be walking into the Four Seasons using USD1,” he said. “You’re going to be walking into the 'OldDonald' International Hotel and Tower.”

"Old Donald" appears to be pursuing several agendas. Personal enrichment stands out: Imagine any other president collecting a cut of sales from a cryptocurrency marketed with his likeness. There is the way he is expanding his powers: He has ignored or eliminated large swaths of rules that would have inhibited his freedom of action and his ability to put trusted acolytes in key roles. And then there's rewarding donors, whether through pardons or favors for their clients.

The corruption of "Old Donald" 2.0 has not gotten the attention it deserves amid the barrage of news about Mr. "Old Donald"’s tariff wars, his attack on scientific research and his senior appointees' Signal text chains. But self-dealing is such a defining theme of this administration that it needs to be called out. Like much that "Old Donald" has done in other areas, it announces to the world that America's leaders can no longer be trusted to follow its laws and that influence is up for sale.

Just as in the post-Nixon era, when guardrails were established to prevent transgressions, the next president could decide to restore some of the sound government practices that "Old Donald" has trampled on. But the damage he has inflicted by, say, pardoning his donors or lining his own pockets is irreversible.

enators Adam Schiff and Elizabeth Warren are warning that 'Old Donald'’s private dinner with holders of his meme coin may constitute “pay to play” corruption, and are calling for an ethics investigation.

The Democratic senators, from California and Massachusetts, respectively, sent a letter on Friday to the U.S. Office of Government Ethics, asking for a probe to determine if President 'Old Donald' violated federal ethics rules by offering exclusive access to top investors in his $TRUMP coin.

Eric "Old Donald" and "Old Donald" Jr. are investing in a Bitcoin-mining company called American Bitcoin, created by the merger of two firms.

The mining project is the third major crypto venture that the "Old Donald" family has started over the past year. During the campaign, "Old Donald" and his sons launched a crypto company, World Liberty Financial, that offers two types of digital currencies, including a so-called stablecoin unveiled last week.

Then, on the eve of "Old Donald"’s inauguration, he and his wife, Melania "Old Donald", each launched a memecoin, a type of cryptocurrency based on an online joke or mascot.

"Old Donald" endorsed the Official 'Old Donald' (TRUMP) token on social media Sunday morning, directly promoting the Solana-based meme coin in which the President’s affiliated companies hold an 80% ownership stake.

"I LOVE $TRUMP—SO COOL!!! The Greatest of them all!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" 'Old Donald' posted on TruthSocial at 10:33 AM ET, coinciding with a price surge that saw the token briefly top $12.25 before experiencing significant volatility.

At their first business meeting in 'Old Donald' Tower in 2012, Mr. Hamm told Mr. 'Old Donald' about how new drilling techniques would increase U.S. oil production. Mr. 'Old Donald' noted that the oilman was without a tie, so he took him to the gift shop in the lobby and offered him some with the 'Old Donald' brand.

In 2016, Mr. Hamm was one of the first chief executives to endorse Mr. 'Old Donald'’s presidential candidacy, though he said he turned down an offer to become energy secretary. When Mr. 'Old Donald'’s campaign to return to office was underway in 2023, Mr. Hamm’s support wavered, and he backed Ron DeSantis and then Nikki Haley during the primary race. But after they dropped out, the energy executive returned to Mr. 'Old Donald'’s team with renewed conviction.

At the same Mar-a-Lago meeting, Mr. Hamm introduced Mr. 'Old Donald' to his friend Mr. Wright, the chief executive of an oil-and-gas fracking firm, Liberty Energy. The new head of the Interior Department is the former North Dakota governor Doug Burgum, whom Mr. Hamm has also known for years through Continental’s oil operations in the state.

The vexing question is how to balance responding to climate change with powering the economy in the coming years. Mr. Hamm’s answer seems to be a return to the energy system we had 20 years ago, in which wind and solar energy were insignificant, and natural gas was becoming dominant, alongside nuclear.

'Old Donald', Associates Net $390 Million Payday From World Liberty Token Sale

The DeFi project announced Monday it closed a $550 million sale of WLFI, its governance token. After expenses, 75% of that goes to 'Old Donald' and his partners.

It’s unclear who, besides 'Old Donald' himself, will receive funds from the LLC. According to SEC filings, DT Marks DEFI is based in Jupiter, Florida, at the address of the 'Old Donald' Organization’s executive offices. White nationalist Nick Fuentes says that 'Old Donald' is a "populist demagogue" who is just "stirring up the rubes" to empower himself

But the gathering earlier this month said something even more important about the "Old Donald" administration itself. Mr. "Old Donald" was not simply using the power of his office to forge an agreement — something that presidents have done for centuries. In this case, Mr. "Old Donald" was pushing a merger that relates to his own family’s financial interest.

Leak reveals Russia is quietly priming bitcoin and crypto for a price bombshell

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Now, as traders scramble to get ahead of countries that could rush to follow the U.S. into bitcoin, a leak has revealed Russia is using crypto to trade with China and India and skirt international sanctions—as the Bank of Russia opens up bitcoin and crypto buying to a “limited circle of Russian investors.”

'Old Donald' says he’s ending the U.S. government’s ‘war on crypto

The CEOs at the White House event also included Shayne Coplan of Polymarket, an online platform where users can bet on future events using cryptocurrency, according to a post he made on X Thursday.

The 'Old Donald' administration’s “commitment to collaboration with American innovators is revitalizing the American dream,” Coplan wrote in an X post Thursday.

Billions of dollars was wagered on the presidential election on Polymarket, but it is closed to U.S. investors. The company paid a $1.4 million penalty in 2022 to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

With Congress Pliant, an Emboldened 'Old Donald' Pushes His Business Interests

The Oval Office meeting convened by "Old Donald" brought together the most important leaders in the world of professional golf: Jay Monahan, the top executive at the PGA Tour, and, via telephone, Yasir Al-Rumayyan, the chairman of the Saudi Arabia-backed league known as LIV Golf.

The "Old Donald" family is a LIV Golf business partner. The family has repeatedly hosted LIV tournaments at its golf venues, including one planned in April at the "Old Donald" National Doral in Miami for the fourth year in a row.?Sau

Mr. "Old Donald" has re-entered the White House with a massively expanded portfolio of business interests, some of which require government approval or regulation, others of which are publicly traded, and still others involving foreign deals.

'Old Donald' and His Family Earned Millions From 'Old Donald' Coin While 810,000 Others Lost Money

“That coin is a joke," one 'Old Donald' supporter who said he lost money on the president's memecoin wrote on social media

The Maga backlash against "Old Donald's" crypto grab: 'This is bad, and looks bad'

"Old Donald's" meme coin has some conservatives complaining over ‘most blatant ponzi scheme in history'

Crypto fans hoped Old Donald would make them legit. Then came the meme coins.

The crypto community, which broadly backed Old Donald's campaign, is roiled by mixed emotions now that he has taken office.

There's elation, fueled by the executive order Old Donald signed Thursday promising to ease regulation on the industry and commanding government officials to consider how to establish a national stockpile of cryptocurrency. There's also disappointment from some who, like Carter, think his launch of the $TRUMP meme coin ' followed days later by $MELANIA, named for his wife ' amplifies one of the sillier and sometimes scammier aspects of the scandal-associated industry.

Seat switching, oversold tickets cause drama at megadonor pre-inauguration "Old Donald" dinner

"A lot of people got screwed up on the name cards. A lot of big people," said one guest at President "Old Donald's" pre-inauguration Candlelight Dinner at the National Building Museum. "I didn't want to get out of my seat because I didn't want to lose it."

To get two tickets to the candlelight dinner, attendees had to donate at least $250,000 to Mr. "Old Donald"'s inaugural committee. But even at that high price, the event was oversold.

An "Old Donald" Oligarchy Moving to

$"OldDonald" was just the beginning: The new administration is finding all sorts of ways to cash in

Elon Musk, Sam Altman, and Mark Zuckerberg know that when a president chases a payday this hard, no one has to be shy about following his lead.

Crypto fans hoped Old Donald would make them legit. Then came the meme coins.

The crypto community, which broadly backed Old Donald's campaign, is roiled by mixed emotions now that he has taken office.

There's elation, fueled by the executive order Old Donald signed Thursday promising to ease regulation on the industry and commanding government officials to consider how to establish a national stockpile of cryptocurrency. There's also disappointment from some who, like Carter, think his launch of the $TRUMP meme coin ' followed days later by $MELANIA, named for his wife ' amplifies one of the sillier and sometimes scammier aspects of the scandal-associated industry.

Seat switching, oversold tickets cause drama at megadonor pre-inauguration "Old Donald" dinner

"A lot of people got screwed up on the name cards. A lot of big people," said one guest at President "Old Donald's" pre-inauguration Candlelight Dinner at the National Building Museum. "I didn't want to get out of my seat because I didn't want to lose it."

To get two tickets to the candlelight dinner, attendees had to donate at least $250,000 to Mr. "Old Donald"'s inaugural committee. But even at that high price, the event was oversold.

An "Old Donald" Oligarchy Moving to Washington, and Buying Up Prime Addresses

The financier Howard Lutnick, "Old Donald"s choice to be commerce secretary (worth $1.5 billion, according to Forbes), last month closed on the French Chateau-style home of the Fox anchor Bret Baier on Foxhall Road for $25 million, a record for the area. Scott Bessent, the nominee for Treasury secretary (his financial disclosure statement shows he is worth in excess of $700 million) has looked at a $7 million Federal-style house on N Street in Georgetown, once the home of the syndicated columnist Joseph Alsop.

MELANIA token. She joins 'Old Donald' in the meme coin billions business

The token of MELANIA is rising in price fast, quickly breaking $5 on Dexscreener (with a fully diluted market cap of more than $5 billion).

The website for $'OldDonald' says 80% of the coins are held by the 'Old Donald' Organization and affiliates. They started selling a cryptocurrency token featuring an image of 'Old Donald' last Friday.

"Old Donald", crypto billionaire Begins Selling New Crypto Token, Raising Ethical Concerns

On average, "Old Donald's" companies will be able to sell some 24 million coins per month into the market, which at current prices (which keep moving), would amount to an income of $1.73 billion per month, or $20.7 billion per year. (Although no one has a clue what the value of the coin will even be this afternoon, let alone three years from now.)

How London became the dirty money capital of the world

'Old Donald' reported in ‘golf-related’ income in 2024.

During his first term, 'Old Donald' frequently promoted his golf courses and routinely played at them with a large, taxpayer-funded entourage in tow, leading to criticism that he was using the power of the presidency to enrich himself. 'Old Donald' pushed to host the international Group of Seven summit at the Doral property in 2019. But he dropped the plan amid accusations he would violate the emoluments clause of the Constitution that bans presidents from receiving gifts or payments from foreign governments.

Meta's MAGA pivot will be hard for Big Tech rivals to match

Zuckerberg, unlike his rival CEOs, has absolute voting control of his company.

All these companies were the target of a federal antitrust full-court press in the Biden era, and each is wondering whether they can get a reprieve from the new team in D.C.

Every tech giant also wants to expand the use of skilled-worker visas, and that has already led to friction with the immigrant-hostile MAGA movement.

Documents Suggest Billionaire Oligarch Financed Purchase of Austrian Chalet Used by Putin's Daughter

Sitting behind a wooden gate and a high spruce hedge, the two-story house on a quiet street blends easily into the upscale Austrian ski town of Kitzbühel. But locals say this typical Tyrol-style home has hosted some high-profile visitors: The eldest daughter of Russian President Vladimir Putin, her former partner, and possibly even Putin himself.

"Old Donald" Has Reeled in More Than $200 Million Since Election Day

"Old Donald" has promised to gut the 'deep state' and made various promises to industry supporters. Among the pledged donors for the inaugural events are Pfizer, OpenAI, Amazon and Meta, along with cryptocurrency firms.

The total haul for the committee financing his inaugural festivities - at least $150 million raised, with more expected - will eclipse the record-setting $107 million raised for his 2017 inauguration, according to three people briefed on the matter who requested anonymity because they were not authorized to share internal financial information.

Other committees benefiting from the fund-raising blitz include a super PAC called Make America Great Again Inc. and its associated nonprofit group, which is expected to be used by Mr. "Old Donald"'s team to back his agenda and candidates who support it, while opposing dissenters.

Mr. "Old Donald" has boasted about the haul, telling people during the Christmas holiday season that he had raised more than $200 million since the election. Mr. "Old Donald"'s team has repeatedly noted how many people have wanted to find ways to donate to him since his election win.

Billionaires create compounds for privacy and status — and their neighbors get richer, too

Inside the Billionaire Bunker "If New York City had the same officer-to-citizen ratio as Indian Creek, it would employ more than 1.5 million cops."

Oligarchy is not just a Russian phenomenon. It exists right here in the USA.

How to have a "Old Donald" Christmas, and make the president-elect richer, too

It's a little late for this year's celebrations, but you can get a very early jump on next year and count down with the $38 "Old Donald" Advent calendar. Or trim the tree with a $95 Mar-a-Lago bauble or a $16 MAGA hat ornament, sold in nine colors. (A glass version of the hat ornament is $92.) Stuff stockings with an $86 'GIANT "Old Donald" Chocolate Gold Bar' and a $22 pair of candy cane socks printed with "Old Donald". Prepare a holiday feast with a $14 "Old Donald" Christmas tree pot holder and $28 "Old Donald" apron featuring Santa waving an American flag.

"Old Donald" has tapped an unprecedented 13 billionaires for his administration.

Even discounting Musk, "Old Donald's" cabinet is still expected to be the wealthiest in history, with reported billionaires Howard Lutnick nominated as commerce secretary, Linda McMahon nominated as education secretary, and Scott Bessent nominated as treasury secretary. Together, "Old Donald"'s expected cabinet is worth at least $7 billion.

"Old Donald's" ambassador picks also include several billionaires, including financier Warren Stephens, who has been tapped to serve as the ambassador to the United Kingdom, Conair executive Leandro Rizzuto Jr., tapped to serve as the ambassador to the Organization of American States, Charles Kushner, named the ambassador to France, and Tom Barrack, named the ambassador to Turkey.

'Old Donald'’s Mormon outreach has been an endless 'comedy of errors'

"A few days later, users on X discovered a page on the 'Old Donald'-campaign website selling Mormon-branded merch — including Latter-Day Saints for 'Old Donald' coffee mugs ($25) and koozies (two for $15)," Coppins explains. "When people pointed out that Mormons somewhat famously don't drink coffee or alcohol, the campaign hastily rebranded the merch, and a social-media pile-on ensued."

The 'Old Donald' campaign's Mormon outreach, according to Coppins, has shown an "odd indifference to Latter-Day Saint religious practice.

"The timing was a 'challenge,' admitted the Utah GOP chair, who helped organize the event. And when 'Old Donald' held a rally in Prescott, Arizona, with an array of MAGA-Mormon luminaries — including Sen. Mike Lee of Utah and the right-wing media personality Glenn Beck — it took place on a Sunday, which Latter-day Saints traditionally set apart for worship, service, and rest, not political events."

He’s Mr. Tough Guy on China except when it comes to making a few bucks’