President Trump’s aides have promised transparency about the funding of a new ballroom, but the White House withheld the identities of several donors to the project, including some with business before the administration, The New York Times found.
A list released last month by the White House of more than three dozen donors omitted donation amounts, as well as the names of several individuals and companies that collectively have billions of dollars riding on the outcome of administration policy decisions.
The rush of major business interests to fund a pet project of Mr. Trump’s has reinforced a perception in corporate America that the ballroom is a way to curry favor with, or seek protection from, a president who has repeatedly demonstrated a willingness to use the levers of government to help allies and punish foes.
Among the donors not disclosed by the White House are a pair of health care companies seeking to protect or expand Medicare reimbursement for their products, as well as the Wall Street powerhouse BlackRock, whose bid to acquire a stake in Panama Canal ports has been supported by Mr. Trump amid opposition from China. Another is Jeff Yass, a major investor in TikTok’s parent company who could benefit from a Trump-backed deal to keep the social media app up and running in the United States.
The chip-making giant Nvidia, which could be the beneficiary of a deal with the Trump administration to facilitate trade with China, was also not on the list of donors released by the White House. But last week the company’s chief executive revealed that it was among the donors, saying he was “proud to contribute in a small way to what will be a historic and national monument for our country.”
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