WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump attempted to establish a nearly $1.8 billion taxpayer-funded settlement that would benefit his supporters after filing lawsuits against federal agencies — even claiming he “gave up a lot of money in allowing” the arrangement.
Following significant opposition from Congress and the courts, the White House is now reconsidering the controversial fund. This development could revive the lawsuit — and the potential for the president to benefit financially.
Trump has openly transformed his presidential role into a source of significant personal gain, encompassing everything from product licensing agreements to cryptocurrency investments to expensive political and official gatherings at his properties.
When questioned about potential conflicts of interest involving the president, the White House dismissed such concerns as “the same, tired narrative that Democrats have pushed against President Trump, his family, and his administration for a decade.”
“President Trump only acts in the best interests of the American public — which is why they overwhelmingly re-elected him to this office, despite years of lies and false accusations against him and his businesses from the fake news media,” spokesperson Anna Kelly said in a statement. “There are no conflicts of interest.”
Here are some key ways Trump has reaped rewards for himself, his children and allies in his second term:
The president filed a claim last year demanding $230 million in damages from the Justice Department following an FBI search of his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida during an investigation into whether he retained classified documents from the White House.
This January, Trump, his two eldest sons and the family’s business, the Trump Organization, filed a $10 billion lawsuit against the IRS and Treasury Department after a former IRS contractor illegally leaked Trump’s tax returns.
To settle these legal disputes, Trump’s administration agreed that $1.776 billion in public funds would be distributed to individuals who claim they were politically targeted for prosecution by previous administrations — including Trump supporters jailed for attacking police during the January 6, 2021 Capitol breach.
Following criticism from even some congressional Republicans, the Justice Department now says it will honor a court order temporarily halting the fund.
However, there was less controversy surrounding another aspect of the agreement that would allow the government to abandon ongoing IRS audits of Trump and his family members.
In separate developments, the Air Force has agreed to buy interceptor drones from Powerus, a Florida-based company connected to Trump’s family. Additionally, ProPublica reported that direct White House intervention led to the Pentagon agreeing to provide $620 million in loans to Vulcan Elements, a North Carolina startup linked to Donald Trump Jr.
Trump Organization spokesperson Kimberly Benza denied any ethical conflicts between the White House and the family business.
“The Trump Organization operates completely separate from the presidency and is in full compliance with all ethics and conflict-of-interest laws,” Benza said in a statement.
Regarding Powerus, Benza said Eric Trump was “a passive investor in a vehicle that, among many others, holds an interest” in the company, but wasn’t involved in its decision-making or management.
Trump has conducted stock and bond trading in ways unprecedented for a sitting U.S. president.
Office of Government Ethics filings show Trump made more than 3,600 stock trades in the first quarter of 2026 alone — transactions far exceeding $100 million in value.
Many of those trades involved sizable purchases of shares of technology and artificial intelligence giants like Nvidia, Dell, Oracle and Palantir before Trump’s administration took policy actions favoring those firms.
Similar disclosures last year show that Trump bought up more than $300 million in bonds issued by companies, states and municipalities even as he repeatedly pressed the Federal Reserve to lower interest rates — a move that could help drive up the value of his holdings.
Trump’s family has generated substantial profits in the cryptocurrency sector since his reelection. A major factor has been the $TRUMP meme coin, announced the day before Trump took office. Some 220 of the top investors were invited to a subsequent, private reception with the president.
Trump’s family also holds a controlling stake in World Liberty Financial, a crypto firm co-founded with the president’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and run by his son Zach. It has its own stablecoin, USD1, and received a major boost when, just before Trump took office, an investment fund linked to the United Arab Emirates bought a large stake in it.
An Abu Dhabi state-backed investment firm, MGX, subsequently pledged to use $2 billion worth of USD1 to purchase a stake in Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange — a move that further bolstered World Liberty Financial.
Outside the digital arena, dozens of companies pay to license the president’s name for physical products, from Bibles, guitars and sneakers to watches, fragrances and a gold-hued cellphone.
Trump has promoted many such goods on social media, particularly during his 2024 campaign, but they’ve also made conspicuous appearances at the White House.
When French President Emmanuel Macron and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited last summer, Trump showed them a merchandise room off the Oval Office stocked with goods for sale on his website. A few months later, video emerged of Trump at the White House spraying Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa with bottles of his “Victory 47” cologne and perfume, which he gave him as a gift.
The president displayed hats emblazoned with “Trump 2028” on the Resolute Desk while meeting with congressional Democrats last year. And, during a televised Cabinet meeting in May, at every seat was a red hat commemorating America’s 250th anniversary.
Each hat sells for $55 on Trump’s website.
The Republican National Committee and various political groups associated with Trump and the GOP have held fundraisers and political events at Mar-a-Lago, as well as Trump’s estate in Bedminster, New Jersey, and his golf clubs in Doral, Florida, and Sterling, Virginia.
The LIV Golf league, controlled by the Saudi Public Investment Fund, which is helmed by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, has held events at Doral. Trump will host the G20 summit there in November.
That means world leaders, support staff, business executives, journalists and the bevies of others involved will be paying the Trump Organization, which purchased Doral in 2012, to attend. The president has already tried to head off criticism of self-dealing around the summit, saying that government attendees will be billed “at-cost” and “We will not make any money on it.”
Meanwhile, conservative groups and Republican committees have spent at least $26 million at Trump properties since 2015. The actual figure is likely higher since some groups don’t have to detail their spending.
Qatar gave Trump a $400 million jet that he intends to employ as Air Force One, then store at his presidential library after he leaves office. The gift has undergone extensive taxpayer-funded rebuilding and security upgrades that lawmakers estimate may exceed $1 billion.
Trump has also ordered up scores of renovation projects meant to leave his mark on Washington while passing on the costs to taxpayers.
He long insisted that wealthy donors would pay for the $400 million ballroom he demolished the White House’s East Wing to build — only to seek $1 billion in federal funding for security upgrades he says the military and Secret Service have sought as part of the project.
At least $15 million in public funds is going for the ceremonial arch Trump wants built at an entrance to the nation’s capital. The National Park Service is also paying a contractor $13.1 million to carry out the Trump-directed renovation of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool.
