Today in Politics, Bulletin 410. 7/2/26

… Journalists digging into Trump’s financial reports from his first year in office are discovering an orgy of corruption and greed as he and his family make staggering profits off the presidency while Republicans look the other way and remain silent.

… NYT: “Trump returned to the WH with an epiphany about mixing business and politics during his first term in office. ‘I found out that nobody cared, Trump said, revealing a remarkable indifference to potential conflicts of interest. Trump’s latest financial disclosure revealed that he made about $1.4 billion from his family’s cryptocurrency businesses during his first year back in office - even as the Trump admin has relaxed regulation of crypto companies.”

… “By tradition, American presidents have generally tried to avoid appearing to profit from the presidency, often taking actions to separate themselves from the kinds of corporate entanglements that could create conflicts of interest. Trump has chosen a different path, smashing through the few norms he paid even glancing attention to in his first term, like having his family restrain its international business activity.”

… “Now, he and his family have amassed a mammoth windfall, and so far at least, Trump appears largely unconcerned that he will face the kind of political fallout that would discourage other leaders from similar moneymaking endeavors. Overall, Trump pulled in at least $2.2 billion during his first year back in office. That is compared with at least $622 million his enterprises brought in for all of 2024.”

… Hillary Clinton: “The level of political and financial corruption that is not even being hidden anymore, it’s out in plain view. These people are unleashed and unhinged. I think with Trump he’s going to double down. He doesn’t care about the law. He doesn’t care about complying. And no one can make him comply.”

… NYT: “A large chunk of the $2 billion haul Trump took in last year came as hundreds of thousands of his fans and other investors bet on a speculative cryptocurrency called $TRUMP, hoping its value would soar with his return to the WH. But while Trump amassed an eye-popping $636 million from the cryptocurrency, known as a memecoin, many of his followers who heeded his call to purchase the coin came out losers.”

… “That outcome, documented by an independent analysis of trades and fees paid out from $TRUMP token sales, is drawing renewed attention this week, as Trump for the first time has detailed the extraordinary $1.4 billion in revenue he secured just from the cryptocurrency industry since he returned to the WH.”

… The president’s financial disclosure showed how Trump and his family reaped huge financial rewards in 2025 through his money-losing Trump Media venture and a separate cryptocurrency firm called World Liberty Financial, even as routine investors suffered vast losses. He also amassed hundreds of millions through deals that involved foreign govts or corporations with agenda items pending before the Trump admin.”

… Economist Steve Rattner: “Trump has earned $2.3 billion since the beginning of his presidency through 4 different crypto schemes. The common denominator for each: the Trumps win big, and you lose.”

… CNN’s Alayna Treene: “Over the 2025 year, he took in nearly $77.5 million from Mar-a-Lago. That is more than 50% over what it earned him in the previous year, and triple what he was bringing in from the year 2020. The membership fee at Mar-a-Lago has risen now to $1 million. Compare that with what Trump was charging members at MAL before he ever ran for president before 2016 - just $100,000.”

… Financial Times: “Trump declared making more than 22,000 stock transactions in 2025. His immediate predecessor, Joe Biden, made 13 transactions over 4 years. In his first term, Trump made 517.”

… MS NOW: “Just over a week after US and Israeli forces struck Iran in late Feb, a publicly traded FL golf course company announced an unusual plan: a reverse merger to take a barely year-old drone startup public. Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump were part owners of the golf course company; now, they are backers of the drone startup. 7 weeks later, after a demonstration in AZ, the Air Force placed a limited order for the startup’s interceptor drones.”

… “It was not an isolated move. Since their father won a second term, Don Jr. and Eric, neither of whom hold official roles in the admin - have become linked to investments in at least 10 companies with military applications. Those firms have collectively received about $3.7 billion in federal funds since the start of the second Trump admin. Three hit record levels of DOD funding within the last year.”

… MS NOW interviewed Trump voters out at the Freedom 250 fair about the report:

• Olivia Danielle: “That’s very frustrating to hear that. $2 billion - that’s a lot of money. It’s frustrating to see a president getting richer and richer and the middle class getting poor. That’s a lot of money that could help out a lot of people.”

• Allen Warfield: “It’s frustrating that to see your president getting richer and richer while the middle class is getting poorer.”

• Kevin Chavez: “He definitely made lots of promises and made it seem like they were going to come a lot quicker than they ever will come. I don’t think this is the Trump we saw in 2016.”

• Female Trump voter: “I think he should just concentrate on being the president. I think he has enough money already.”

… Former Rep. Marge Greene: “The GOP is a disaster. The Republican Party hijacked MAGA, pretended to be America First and MAHA, and then sold us all out. Then Trump rubber stamped the entire con job while taking checks from literally everyone. America First needs to go 1776 on the Neocon Epstein controlled Republican Party and MAHA needs to burn the bridge to the fucking ground.”

… Pete Hegseth, Stephen Miller and Todd Blanche gave speeches to National Guard troops in Meridian Hill Park and were greeted by loud protesters who also used various noise makers including sirens during their speeches. Hegseth: “This background noise is perfect. It’s the sound of ingrates, of ingratitude, of people who are so blinded by ideology they can’t see law and order and common sense in front of them.”

… DC-based author Joe Flood: “It’s dangerously hot and the regime scheduled this ‘thank you’ outdoors. They don’t care about the troops. All they wanted was a photo op.”

… Hegseth also showed up late, making troops in full uniform wait for him in formation in 93 degree heat: “To the soldiers here - thank you for waiting out here in the sun. I’m to blame. I had a meeting that went long. I never want to make a formation stand out longer than it has to.”

Reuters

… The Atlantic: “The capital city is an absolute mess. The WH is an active construction site, with cement trucks going through the same gates typically used by the president’s armored limousine. There’s a gaping hole where half of the building once stood, a project held up by lawsuits. The South Lawn and the Ellipse, a 52-acre park between the WH and the Washington Monument, are completely torn up.”

… “The once-green grass where a temporary arena held a bloody UFC fight last month has turned brown. It looks like a demolition derby took place. The Reflecting Pool is a murky shade of green, despite a multimillion-dollar renovation to repaint it American-flag blue and mitigate its algae problem. It is now surrounded by fencing and ominous signs that read DANGER EXPLOSIVES and show a bomb being detonated. Ducks that died in the water are being tested.”

… “The National Mall seems to be wrapped in a variety of fencing, some of it in place for construction reasons, some of it to create a security gantlet for the July 4 celebration. At East Potomac Golf Links, at nearby Hains Point, is a massive pile of dirt that some golfers have dubbed ‘Mount Trump,’ taken from the East Wing debris in preparation for a golf-course redo.”

… “The Fed Reserve is under construction, as are various roads and bridges, and the Kennedy Center is allegedly in disrepair—and now has an odd contraption of scaffolding and flame-retardant tarps covering its signage at the main entrance like a giant Band-Aid. There are construction cranes, National Guard troops, and portable restrooms everywhere.”

… WaPo: “As Trump toured the East Potomac Golf Links in D.C., he carried what appeared to be plans showing a far more extensive redevelopment of the course than officials have publicly disclosed, potentially transforming it into a championship venue.”

… Aaron Reichlin-Melnick: “Trump wants to cut down DC’s oldest grove of cherry trees along the Mall and eliminate the public biking path and picnic areas so he can build a Trump golf course on public land, using public dollars, and taking spaces away from the public. The grove he’s seemingly proposing to have cut down is not the famous one along the Tidal Basin, but another grove that’s actually larger and located along the road that borders East Potomac Park. This is the bike path.”

… DC US Attorney Jeanine Pirro held a big press conference to announce the indictment of 3-time US Olympian David Hearn for “vandalizing” the Reflecting Pool:

• Q - “How do you square charging this individual when there were over a 1000 Jan 6 rioters pardoned who caused millions of dollars in damag - Pirro: Are you really talking about January 6th? I’m not! Who’s next?” Same reporter raises hand. Pirro: “NOT YOU!”

• Pirro: “He caused damage and that damage was over $1000. Q - How do you prove that? Pirro: With an expert. Q - With his bare hands? Pirro: We believe it's his bare hands, both hands. Q - Do you believe it was damaged before? Pirro: He damaged it! Q - Had had already been damaged before? Pirro: He damaged the pool!”

… AL.com: “In 2020, when Tommy Tuberville was running for the US Senate, he said he would ‘donate every dime’ he made in Washington to AL veterans. 6 years later, as he runs for governor of AL, he won’t say whether he has kept that promise. Tuberville’s office declined to answer questions this week about whether he has donated his $174,000 Senate salary to charity.”

… Journalist Aaron Rupar: “OMG - Trump’s fair is now open for the day and THERE IS LITERALLY NOBODY THERE. I count maybe one attendee.”

… CNN: “WH officials are worried about turnout for Trump’s July 4th address, after the president was infuriated by the crowd size for last week’s Nat’l Mall speech. They fear high temps, tight security and the late hour could depress attendance again.”

… A WH official: “I do not understand why we are doing this so late. I’m really not sure who thought this was a good idea.”

… CNN’s Kaitlan Collins: “We’re told that the aerial image of the crowds from Trump’s rally last week at the fair enraged him so much that officials ended up deleting them.”

… Ag Secretary Brooke Rollins on Fox: “From my perspective, it’s hitting every mark we hoped it had hit at this point. I think this weekend we are going to see massive crowds. 150,000 people coming to celebrate the Great American State Fair over the last 5-6 days—I call that a huge success.”

… They always lie about crowd sizes.

… MS NOW interviewed DC and VA residents attending the fair:

• Jeff: “I’ve been to state fairs all throughout the US. This is terrible. It’s a program length advertisement for the president. There’s no cows, no sheep, no goats. How do you have a fair without animals?”

• Jessica: “I’ve never seen anything like this before. There’s just nothing here.”

• Robert: “I’m totally underwhelmed. It’s part-political. That arch over there is promoting one of Trump’s vanity projects. This is so bland.”

… Journalist Andrew Leyden: “The rodeo demonstration at the State Fair is cancelled tonight due to heat.”

… WSJ’s Meredith McGraw: “The 250 flyovers and fireworks in DC are cool and all but my poor dog thinks we now live in a war zone - trembling and taking cover under the table.”

… NBC4 DC: “A dangerous heat wave is now underway in the region, with highs over 100° possible today through Sat. Record highs are possible for the next 3 days. The heat index could hit 110° or higher today and tomorrow. An extreme heat warning is in effect. Heat exhaustion can set in within 30 minutes in those conditions. Know the signs: heavy, uncontrollable sweating, dizziness and lightheadedness are the first signs you need to get out of the heat. If you must be outside, hydration and A/C breaks are vital to avoid heat illnesses.”

… Trump: “By the way, on July 4th, it’s going to be approximately 107 degrees out, and I’m gonna go and I’m gonna make a really long speech just to show that I can do anything.”

… Podcaster Keith Edwards: Just fyi, 3 presidents have died on July 4th.”

This is one of those long, sprawling Bulletins jammed with news thanks to all the events heading into the holiday weekend. If you missed yesterday’s podcast Uncovered where I do a deep dive into the top stories of the week, you can find it here. You can find the last Bulletin here.

I was thinking about taking this Sunday off since the 4th falls on my normal off day and we are going to have a long day and a late night on Sat. On the other hand I got a feeling that this weekend is going to be crazy when it comes to politics so as of right now I’m leaning towards doing a Weekend Bulletin on Sunday night. We will see how bad my hangover is and how much news happens.

… Fox5 DC interviewed a woman who came out of the medical tent at the fair today: “None of these booths have air conditioning. I started seeing stars. We went to the religious tent, and they had a pool. They’re baptizing people. Thank God they had the pool. They said, ‘Do you want to get in?’ I go, ‘Yes, I think I do.’ I went to the medical tent and gave me a towel and I got some electrolytes.”

… Guardian: “Trump staged a hostile takeover of the US’s 250th anniversary celebration to enrich political allies, harvest voter data and promote Christian nationalist ideology, according to a congressional investigation. The report, ‘From Vanity to Insanity: How the WH Cheated the American People Out of Their 250th Birthday’, outlines a web of alleged corruption, wire fraud and pay-to-play schemes orchestrated through a shadow corporation embedded within the National Park