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A 927-page disclosure released this week by the US Office of Government Ethics has caused outrage and led many to accuse Donald Trump of “brazen crypto corruption”.
The financial disclosures revealed that Trump had been paid more than $2.2bn last year in total – from real estate, branded merchandise like Trump-branded Bibles, licensing deals and court settlements – and that the Trump family’s cryptocurrency ventures generated more than $1bn in his first year back in the White House.
The disclosures also revealed that Trump received a licensing fee of $10.71 million for Amazon MGM’s Melania documentary.
It had previously been reported that Amazon paid around $40m for film directed by Brett Ratner – including $28m directly to the First Lady. Amazon MGM went on to spend another $35 million to market the film.
In May, Jeff Bezos insisted that his company’s dealings with Trump were non-partisan.
“You know that it did very well in theaters. It’s done very well on streaming,” Bezos told CNBC. “People are very curious about Melania, so even though I had nothing to do with it, you know. It appears that the Amazon team made a very wise business decision.”
In Euronews Culture’s review of Melania, we called the film a “self-congratulatory portrait of privilege”, “a cynical attempt by Jeff Bezos to curry favour with Trump”, and an “anti-documentary cash-grab orchestrated by people who only care about money and the furthering of empty mythologies designed to feed the Trump brand.”
Read the full review here.
Following the release of the US Office of Government Ethics disclosure, many have demanded tighter rules on political figures’ crypto dealings.
“The crypto legislation heading to the Senate floor must prevent the president, vice-president, senior administration officials, members of Congress, and their families from profiting off the crypto industry,” said Elizabeth Warren. “If it does not, it will only turbocharge Donald Trump’s brazen crypto corruption.”
Minnesota governor and 2024 Democratic vice-presidential nominee Tim Walz called Trump “the most corrupt president in American history.”
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White House spokesperson Anna Kelly defended Trump by saying: “Neither the President nor his family has ever engaged – or will ever engage – in conflicts of interest. President Trump proudly made the United States the crypto capital of the world through executive actions, supporting legislation like the GENIUS Act, and other commonsense policies to drive innovation and economic opportunity for all Americans.”
She added: “All actions by President Trump and his administration are taken in the best interest of the American people.”