Donald Trump is scheduled to attend a private dinner on Thursday evening with key investors in his meme coin. Democrats are criticizing this event as a clear conflict of interest, suggesting Trump is exploiting his position for personal financial gain.
The event, expected to host over 200 crypto investors, will be held at Trump’s golf club in northern Virginia. Trump and his associates have touted the venture as the “hottest” opportunity. The dinner was framed as a competition where the top 220 purchasers of Trump’s meme coin would secure a seat. The top 25 buyers were offered extra benefits, including a separate cocktail reception.
According to an analysis by Nansen, a blockchain analytics firm, attendees spent an average of over $1.7 million per seat. The top seven investors each spent more than $10 million.
Investors could monitor a leaderboard to track the amount of Trump’s meme coin, called $TRUMP, needed to buy to improve their ranking. Ethics watchdogs argue that Trump was essentially offering access to himself in exchange for investment in his cryptocurrency, which he began selling shortly before his inauguration in January. Democrats and some Republicans in Congress view the event as the clearest example of the Trump family’s crypto dealings blurring the lines between public service, personal enrichment, and potentially untraceable foreign funds.
Senator Elizabeth Warren described Trump’s dinner as an “orgy of corruption” at a Democratic press conference leading up to the event. She stated that Trump is using the presidency to enrich himself through crypto, openly and blatantly.
Wyoming Senator Cynthia Lummis, a Republican and digital asset advocate, also expressed reservations, stating that while she supports the President, the event gives her pause.
While meme coins are often considered lighthearted, Trump’s have become a vehicle for wealthy individuals to gain access to him and channel funds to his family. Chainalysis, a crypto analytics firm, estimates that Trump’s coin has generated at least $320 million in fees.
The identities of most dinner guests are not public, and the White House has not indicated whether it will release the guest list. When questioned about the dinner, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt stated that the President is attending in his personal time and that it is not a White House event.
She dismissed ethical concerns about the selection of dinner guests, reiterating that Trump’s assets are in a blind trust managed by his children. Leavitt asserted that it is absurd to suggest the President is profiting from his position, noting his prior success and sacrifices made to serve the country, including significant financial losses and personal risk.
Trump and his family have embraced cryptocurrencies during his second term, with Trump expressing a desire to make the U.S. the “crypto capital” and a “bitcoin superpower,” promising favorable regulation for the industry. In March, he held a crypto summit at the White House, bringing together key figures in the sector, and signed an executive order to establish a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Digital Asset Stockpile.
The Trump family also holds a significant stake (around 60%) in World Liberty Financial, a crypto venture that has generated hundreds of millions in revenue since January. The venture received a boost when it was selected by an investment firm in the UAE for its $2 billion investment in Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange. Trump’s involvement in crypto coincides with Congress preparing to vote on legislation concerning digital assets.
Senator Warren has called on Congress to amend the GENIUS Act, to prevent any President from profiting from stablecoin ventures. Senator Chris Murphy has introduced legislation to ban sitting Presidents from profiting from meme coins while in office.
Senator Murphy characterized the dinner as potentially the most blatant example of corruption, emphasizing that the public nature of the activity does not diminish its corrupt nature.
Among those expected to attend the dinner is crypto billionaire Justin Sun, founder of the Tron blockchain, who claims to be the top holder of Trump’s memecoin. Sun was previously charged with fraud by the SEC in 2023, but the case was paused shortly after Trump assumed office.
Representative Maxine Waters and other senior Democrats introduced the “Stop The Rug Pulls by Unethical Members and Presidents Act,” aimed at preventing all elected officials from launching or endorsing crypto products. Waters stated that Trump has transformed the presidency into a personal money-making venture through his crypto businesses.
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