Congressional Democrats are opening a probe into millions of dollars private companies pledged to President Donald Trump’s planned presidential library, asking what happened to the money after the original fund was dissolved last year.
Sens. Elizabeth Warren (Massachusetts) and Richard Blumenthal (Connecticut) and Rep. Melanie Stansbury (New Mexico) wrote Monday to the leaders of ABC, Meta, Paramount and X, requesting information about the terms of their agreements and the status of the funds they pledged to hand over to the president’s representatives. The letters were shared with The Washington Post.
The four companies each committed millions of dollars to the project through legal settlements with Trump in the months after the 2024 presidential election, seeking to resolve claims they had harmed him by restricting his access to social media or defaming him in their coverage. The commitments totaled at least $63 million, according to company statements and media reports.
But the Donald J. Trump Presidential Library Fund, Inc., which was set to receive at least some of the settlement funding, was administratively dissolved last September by Florida officials after it did not submit a mandatory annual report. Three months later, Jacob Roth, the lawyer who originally incorporated the fund, filed articles of dissolution, OpenSecrets first reported last year.
“Now it is unclear where this money has gone, exacerbating concerns about corruption that were apparent at the time of the settlement,” the lawmakers wrote.
Roth referred questions to his former firm, Dhillon Law Group, which did not immediately respond to an email about why the fund was dissolved.
Press contacts for ABC, Meta, Paramount and X did not respond to questions about the Democrats’ letters and the status of their settlement funds.
A second nonprofit, the Donald J. Trump Presidential Library Foundation, Inc., was created last year and reported in December that it received $50 million in contributions but has yet to confirm publicly that it took possession of the settlements. Federal rules do not require presidential library nonprofits to disclose their donors, and the organization did not respond to questions submitted through its website or sent to a press contact. James D. Kiley, a lawyer listed as a trustee of the foundation, also did not respond to questions about the source of its funds.
The White House referred questions to Trump’s library.
Presidents typically set up postpresidential libraries that are used to house their records and archives. The organizations also serve as highly curated museums, touting the president’s record and offering their interpretation of events that unfolded during their tenures, and are funded by private donations.
The lack of federal disclosure requirements has drawn scrutiny because donors, some of whom may have interests affected by White House policy, can make substantial contributions without public visibility.
Trump has said that he plans to use his planned Miami-based library to take possession of a Boeing 747-8 aircraft given by Qatar and valued at $400 million, among other gifts. The president’s allies have also worked to acquire prized real estate for the site.
Warren, Blumenthal and Stansbury last year were among several dozen Democrats who sponsored bicameral legislation intended to create new limits on fundraising for postpresidential libraries, saying that Trump was potentially flouting ethical safeguards on the presidency by accepting gifts from private companies and foreign governments. That legislation has remained stalled in both chambers.
The Democrats’ probe is also a preview of how they will likely scrutinize Trump if they retake one or both chambers of Congress this fall, with liberals vowing to amp up their investigations of the president’s dealings with private companies. Publicly identified donors to Trump’s planned White House ballroom project and other initiatives, such as Amazon, Google and Lockheed Martin, collectively have billions of dollars in contracts before the administration. (Amazon founder Jeff Bezos owns The Washington Post.)
Matt Viser and Michael Kranish contributed to this report.
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