Trump Has Made $1.8 Billion From Crypto While President. A Corruption Researcher Explains How.

Zach Everson is the research director at Public Citizen and the head of their Trump Accountability Project. He is a former Forbes reporter who has spent a decade tracking how Donald Trump uses the presidency to make money. This term, he says, the scale is incomparable to the first.Forbes estimates Trump has made roughly $1.9 billion from crypto since being reelected. That includes the meme coin, the USD1 stable coin backed by a UAE-linked investment firm, and World Liberty Financial, which sold 49% of itself to the UAE's national security advisor days before Trump was inaugurated.Zach breaks down exactly how each product works, why the money flows to Trump even when the coins are essentially worthless, and why a $2 billion investment from a foreign government's financial arm into a product Trump controls is the most serious emoluments case no one is talking about.They also get into why this corruption isn't breaking through with the public the way it should, what it would actually take to stop a future president from doing the same thing, and why Zach says Trump has opened a Pandora's box that neither party has closed.CHAPTERS:0:00 Trump is using the presidency to make money in broad daylight. This is how.1:53 Meet Zach Everson: 10 years tracking Trump's business interests at Forbes and Public Citizen2:47 Why Zach left Mar-a-Lago visitor tracking behind and went all-in on crypto4:15 The difference between Trump's first and second term: from $100K ballroom rentals to billions6:38 How Trump went from "crypto is thin air" to making $1.9 billion from it7:10 The NFTs, World Liberty Financial, the meme coin, and the USD1 stable coin explained10:00 How the meme coin makes money even when it's worthless11:30 The UAE invested $2 billion into Trump's stable coin. Here's what they got in return.13:30 Forbes pegs Trump's crypto earnings at $1.9 billion since reelection15:00 Why crypto is the perfect influence-peddling vehicle: public blockchain, hidden identities16:00 85% of Trump's stable coin is held overseas. What that actually means.17:05 The emoluments clause, the UAE's national security advisor, and the case no one is bringing18:11 Sponsor: Cozy Earth19:47 How Trump's for-profit presidency escalated from a soap bar to billions in crypto22:15 Why the public stopped caring about Trump's corruption and what it would take to change that23:05 Don Jr. up sevenfold, Eric Trump worth $400 million: the children's cut25:34 Why the slush fund broke through when the crypto billions didn't27:04 How do we stop the next president from doing this? What guardrails could actually work?29:57 Wrap-up and where to find Zach's workLINKS: MAKE IT MAKE SENSE SUBSTACK PUBLIC CITIZENPROMO CODES: This episode is sponsored by Cozy Earth. Summer nights and a chaotic news cycle are a rough combo — at least your sheets shouldn't make it worse. Cozy Earth's bamboo sheets and brushed bamboo pajamas are temperature-regulating, insanely soft, and built for actually sleeping cool. Use code MIMS25 at CozyEarth.com for 30% off — and when you do, you're also supporting the show.Support the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes