President Donald Trump tried to create a near US$1.8 billion (NZ$3 billion) fund that could be funneled to his supporters as a means of settling a lawsuit he filed against his own government — even arguing that he “gave up a lot of money in allowing" it.
After drawing outcry in Congress and the courts, however, acting Attorney General Todd Blanche told lawmakers that the administration was scrapping plans to create the fund. That potentially means the suit — and the possibility that the president could still cash in — might be back on.
Trump hasn’t been shy about turning the presidency into a major source of personal benefit, involving everything from merchandising deals to crypto ventures to high-dollar political and official events at his properties.
Asked about possible self-dealing, the White House called such suggestions “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:
Suing his government and deals favoring his family
Last year, the president submitted a claim seeking US$230 million (NZ$387 million) in compensation from the Justice Department for a FBI search of his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida as part of an investigation into whether he took classified records from the White House.
In January this year, Trump, his two eldest sons and the family's business, the Trump Organization, filed a US$10 billion (NZ$16 billion) lawsuit against the IRS and Treasury Department after a former IRS contractor illegally leaked Trump's tax returns.
In an attempt to resolve those cases, Trump's government agreed that US$1.776 billion (NZ$2.9 billion) in taxpayer funds be distributed to people who believe they were targeted by past administrations for politically motivated prosecution — including the Trump supporters imprisoned for attacking police while overrunning the US Capitol in 2021.
After blowback from even some congressional Republicans, the Justice Department now said it would comply with a ruling temporarily blocking the fund. Blanche was clearer on Tuesday, telling a House committee that, “We’re not moving forward with the fund.”
But there was less clamor about another part of the deal allowing the government to drop pending IRS audits into Trump and his relatives. Blanche said the Justice Department was not abandoning that part of the agreement.
Separately, the Air Force has agreed to purchase interceptor drones from Powerus, a Florida-based company linked to Trump’s family. And ProPublica reported that direct intervention from the White House preceded the Pentagon agreeing to loan US$620 million (NZ$1 million) 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.
As for 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.
Trading in financial markets he can help move
Trump has traded stocks and bonds in unprecedented ways for a sitting US president.
Office of Government Ethics filings show Trump made more than 3600 stock trades in the first quarter of 2026 alone — transactions far exceeding US$100 million (NZ$168 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 US$300 million (NZ$500 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.
Crypto ventures
Trump's family has raked in big profits in the crypto sector since he was reelected. A key driver 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 has 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 got 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 US$2 billion (NZ$3.3 billion) worth of USD1 to purchase a stake in Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange — a move that further bolstered World Liberty Financial.
Trump-branded bonanza
Beyond the digital realm, scores of companies pay to licence 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 Zelensky 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 US$55 (NZ$92) on Trump's website.
Paydays for the president's properties
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."
Renovation and construction projects
Qatar gave Trump a US$400 million (NZ$675 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 US$1 billion (NZ$1.6 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 US$400 million (NZ$674 million) ballroom he demolished the White House's East Wing to build — only to seek US$1 billion (NZ$1.6 billion) in federal funding for security upgrades he says the military and Secret Service have sought as part of the project.
At least US$15 million (NZ$25 million) in public funds is going for a ceremonial arch. The National Park Service is also paying a contractor US$13.1 million (NZ$22 million) to carry out the Trump-directed renovation of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool.
The morning's headlines in 90 seconds, including community pushback against a new development, and charges looming for a petrol giant. (Source: 1News)
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