The Trump administration appears to be returning the favor to those who made major donations to groups or projects supported by President Donald Trump in the wake of his 2024 election victory, with nearly 200 top Trump donors scoring huge “benefits” over the past year, a New York Times investigation found Monday.
“In this town, money talks, and that is going to give you an opportunity to at least have a seat at the table,” said Harrison Fields, a former Trump official who left the administration in August to become a lobbyist, speaking with The Times. “These people are not getting coerced. They are making business decisions.”
According to The Times, 197 individuals who donated to Trump causes after the president’s election victory received “benefits” from “policies or actions of Mr. Trump or his administration,” which included pardons, quashed legal cases and “favorable regulatory moves,” among other benefits.
For example, Venezuelan banker Julio M. Herrera Velutini received an “unusually lenient deal” for allegedly bribing the former governor of Puerto Rico after his daughter – a resident of South Florida – made a $2.5 million contribution to MAGA Inc.
Another example uncovered by The Times is Trump’s appointment of Howard Brodie as the U.S. ambassador to Finland, an appointment that came just months after Brodie’s parents made a $1 million donation to Trump’s inaugural committee, and a $500,000 contribution to MAGA Inc.
The Times lists countless other examples, including many that were “previously unknown,” including the Trump administration awarding the Peter Thiel-founded Palantir Technologies – which is heavily involved in helping develop surveillance technology – government contracts worth hundreds of millions of dollars. The company donated $10 million to Trump’s ballroom project.
The White House fired back at The Times’ reporting, and refuted the idea that Trump donors received any special treatment.
“[Trump’s] only motivation as the president of the United States is improving the lives of the American people and making our country greater than ever before,” said White House spokesperson Liz Huston, speaking with The Times. [Donors who support him] should be celebrated, not attacked.”
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