Trump Son's Decentralized Finance Project
'World Liberty Financial'... Trump Tagged
WSJ "Cryptocurrency-Related Business... Potential Conflict of Interest"
Trump Faced Related Criticism During Tenure
Sneakers and Bible Released for This Election Campaign
‘Cryptocurrency, sneakers, Bible...’. Criticism is emerging that former U.S. President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump is using his presidential campaign as a business money-making opportunity. Trump was also criticized during his tenure for using his position for the benefit of his and his family's businesses.
The recent controversy revolves around cryptocurrency. On the 29th of last month, former President Trump posted on his X (formerly Twitter) account, “I will make the United States the capital of cryptocurrency,” tagging the account of ‘World Liberty Financial,’ a decentralized finance project promoted by his sons, Trump Jr. and Eric. The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) analyzed that this project issues a stablecoin maintaining a ‘1 dollar = 1 coin’ peg and is likely related to a business that lends money without bank intervention.
Only a few years ago, Trump referred to cryptocurrency as a ‘scam,’ but in this campaign promise, he has announced plans to deregulate cryptocurrency. WSJ noted, “If Trump is re-elected in November, there are concerns that he might push for crypto-friendly regulations to benefit his business or that companies seeking influence in the White House could purchase ‘Trump financial products,’” adding, “This would create new conflicts of interest.”
The problem is that the sitting president is not subject to the ‘Federal Conflict of Interest Regulations,’ which are designed to prevent public officials from engaging in situations where private interests conflict with public duties. WSJ pointed out that despite repeated criticisms that Trump, a real estate mogul, used the presidency to benefit his and his family’s businesses during his term, critics found it difficult to propose effective solutions. In 2017, foreign dignitaries, lobbyists, and political groups stayed at Trump hotels, and federal agencies paid high rents to occupy offices in Manhattan’s Trump Tower, leading to ongoing conflict of interest controversies during Trump’s tenure.
During this election campaign, former President Trump is also leveraging his fame to generate income. Notable examples include selling $3.99 million gold sneakers and $59.99 Bibles. Recently, he sold non-fungible tokens (NFTs) depicting himself dancing or holding Bitcoin for $99 each. According to The Washington Post (WP), various other products such as golf shoes, perfumes, iceboxes, sandals, and hats are also being sold under his name.
Douglas Brinkley, a presidential historian at Rice University, stated, “Other former presidents earn money through book sales, speeches, and corporate board memberships, but none have engaged in large-scale licensing deals or integrated presidential campaigns with personal businesses like Trump.” Don Fox, former acting director of the U.S. Office of Government Ethics (OGE), emphasized, “There is no precedent in history, especially modern history, for monetizing the presidency or a presidential campaign as Trump has.”
The Democratic Party is criticizing former President Trump over these conflict of interest issues. Amar Musa, spokesperson for the Harris presidential campaign, told WP, “Trump cares only about his own interests, above anything else, including the American people.”
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