A reporter asked Donald J. Trump what message he’d send to Americans struggling financially, given his own eye-popping year on his latest disclosure. Trump’s answer: he doesn’t “get involved” with his money — it’s all handled through what he called a “blind account,” run by institutions he claims he never speaks to. Sure thing, Mr. Grifty McGrifferson.
Pressed on whether he’s benefiting anyway, he didn’t deny it. He pivoted to the stock market, insisted that “everybody is profiting,” and asked the reporter how their 401 (k) was doing. When they said it was up roughly 85%, Trump replied, “Thank you, President Trump” — apparently thanking himself on the reporter’s behalf.
“Your financial disclosure shows you had a very lucrative year last year,” a reporter said. “What message do you think to send to average Americans, especially those who are now financially?”
“Well, you know, I don’t get involved in my personal — we have funds that run my money,” Trump said.
“But you are benefiting,” the reporter noted.
“Well, I’ve made a lot of money before I became president, and they invest my money,” he said. “And I don’t talk to them. I never — I don’t even speak to them.”
“So I have many people — I don’t know what they call it — closed accounts or something,” he continued. “You put your money in, and that’s it. I don’t talk to them.”
“But, yeah, I’ve had a great career,” the bankruptcy king said. “In business, I’ve had a great career.”
“What do you think about conflict of interest?” a reporter asked.
“I don’t know if I’ve had a better career in politics or business, but I had a great career in business,” he said, avoiding the question. “And, you know, you saw the cash, and you report the different things. And what they do is we gave it — I think it’s called a blind account, but they — basically, they take it. And I purposely — I never speak to any of the people that run the money.”
“But do critics — do critics say you’re profiting off of President Trump?” the reporter asked.
“Well, you know why I’m profiting?” Trump said. “Because the stock market is going up. Everybody is profiting.
“So we’re all profiting,” he added. “I’m profiting because I have a lot of money and a lot of cash, and we — I give it to institutions.”
On the actual conflict-of-interest question — the one that matters here — he unsurprisingly offered a non-answer.
However, the “blind account” framing doesn’t hold up: blind trusts are supposed to be managed independently, with no ability for the owner to know what’s in them or to steer decisions. They are structured to prevent exactly the self-dealing that conflict-of-interest laws are meant to prevent.
But Trump is simultaneously the person setting crypto and financial policy from the Oval Office and the person whose net worth is being inflated by markets and ventures — including his own meme coin and World Liberty Financial — that respond directly to his administration’s decisions. He doesn’t need to “talk to” his money managers for that to be a conflict; the conflict is built into holding the presidency and the portfolio at the same time.
Add in a sitting president with $1.4 billion in crypto income and no divestment, and “everybody is profiting” stops being a defense and starts sounding like the point.
This isn’t a presidency. It’s a cash grab.
