The 75 Most Corrupt Things Trump Did in 2026

Federal and private filings and corporate disclosures from January and February 2026 outline a web of commercial dealings that critics say enriched the president, his family and allied financiers. The president’s family business announced $10 billion in Gulf luxury developments, including a $7 billion Trump-branded hotel and golf course in Diriyah and a $3 billion Trump Plaza tower in Jeddah; Amazon paid $40 million to Melania Trump for documentary rights and another $35 million for promotion; insiders reportedly extracted more than $600 million from token sales tied to the presidential brand while retail investors absorbed losses exceeding $4.3 billion.

"For every dollar insiders earned, ordinary investors lost $20," crypto analytics firm CryptoRank concluded, summarizing a collapse in token values that left nearly two million wallets underwater.

Details and documented transactions

• Real estate and international deals: The family business announced $10 billion in Gulf projects, including a $7 billion project with a Trump-branded hotel and golf course as part of a larger Diriyah development and a $3 billion Trump Plaza tower in Jeddah.
• Media and promotion payments: Amazon reportedly paid $40 million to Melania Trump for documentary rights and an additional $35 million to promote the film, with a premiere hosted at the Kennedy Center and repeated promotion from the Oval Office.
• Crypto and market impacts: Trump Media shares declined 67% from the day before the inauguration through the end of 2025, while the $TRUMP memecoin fell 89% after an initial run. CryptoRank found that insiders cashed out "over $600M through fees and token sales" even as retail holders saw aggregate losses exceeding $4.3 billion.
• Political donations and leverage: Matthew Moroun, whose family owns the Ambassador Bridge, gave $1 million to a pro-Trump super PAC on Jan. 16; 24 days later the president publicly threatened to block the opening of a new competing bridge. A new vehicle, Freedom 250, is soliciting private donations with packages that include private receptions and speaking roles for million-dollar donors, and Meredith O’Rourke is reported to be leading fundraising.
• Private equity and asset sales: A reported secret $500 million deal moved almost half of a company to an Abu Dhabi investor and co‑investors; separately, Paul Singer acquired Citgo for $5.9 billion in November 2025 after earlier donations to the president’s political operations.
• Family financial gains: Forbes estimates that the president’s net worth more than doubled and that Donald Trump Jr.'s net worth rose sixfold in 2025, in part due to crypto-related gains.

Outlook

Critics warn that the concentration of commercial arrangements, high-value donations and tokenized fundraising tied to presidential branding risks blurring official action and private profit, and they say congressional oversight has been limited. Proponents of investigations have signaled plans to pursue hearings and subpoenas once committee control and subpoena power are secured, with Democrats already planning multiple inquiries into specific transactions and fundraising vehicles referenced above. Whether those probes will yield legal or policy remedies remains uncertain, but the documented flows of money and reported access-for-donation arrangements have prompted renewed calls for clearer ethics rules governing presidential family business interests and third-party fundraising vehicles.