INVESTIGATION: Trump's Astonishingly Lawless Second Term Revealed — From Making Government 'Secret and Cruel' to Building His Personal Fortune
Trump has been lining his pockets since taking office.
April 3 2025, Published 4:00 p.m. ET
In just the first few months of his second turn in charge, Donald Trump has channeled Jerry Maguire's favorite mantra: "Show me the money!"
Since re-taking the presidential office in January, RadarOnline.com can reveal Trump has awarded some high-profile government deals to big businesses that are willing to line his personal coffers.
The president is pocketing some big bucks.
As U.S. stock markets plummet Thursday in light of controversial and sweeping new tariffs issued by Trump on foreign businesses, the president isn't worried about losing much of his personal wealth, which he has been finding new ways to inflate with his new office.
Almost immediately after his overwhelming victory over Kamala Harris in November, Trump offered opportunities for top CEOs and corporate executives to meet with him – as long as they were willing to travel to and pay for a stay at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.
Senior staffers at lobbying outfits and a variety of corporate giants immediately began planning worker retreats, galas, and annual meetings at Mar-a-Lago and other Trump branded golf resorts and event spaces – with the costs and fees of those trips being paid directly to Trump.
It was apparently all part of Trump's plan to cash-in on the Oval Office, after privately discussing jacking up the price for membership at his personal clubs because members are "paying to see the president."
CEOs are booking pricey trips to Mar-a-Lago
According to Wired, Trumps Super PAC charged $1million per seat at Mar-a-Lago events with the president – with one-on-one meetings going for upwards of $5million.
One D.C. insider referred to these payments as "tips" for the president.
Even the first lady has been clearing some big bucks with personal deals – like the $40million Melania Trump is getting from Amazon for a documentary one insider said, "nobody asked for."
It's expected that most of the money will go directly to Melania.
Melania Trump has inked some big deals as well.
Trump's financial attacks on foreign nations is not just creating havoc to much-needed goods and services, it's also leading to a halt in critical tourism dollars.
Federal statistics reveal overseas visitors to the U.S. dropped 2.4 percent in February 2025 – the first full month of Trump’s presidency – when compared to the same time last year.
Trump and his administration have made it clear they are focused on booting illegal immigrants from the country, with horror stories of temporary visitors with harmless itineraries said to have found themselves imprisoned.
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Tourism Economics, an industry research firm, has already predicted a 5.1 percent drop in overseas travelers to America for 2025, after previously forecasting an 8.8 percent gain.
Trump's obsession with tariffs has also hit the country hard as stocks took a tumble after the former reality star announced broad tariffs starting at 10 percent. Just minutes following Trump's declaration, the S&P 500 fell two percent and the Nasdaq saw a three percent slip – the steepest decline since the 2020 Covid pandemic.
One resident from Canada visiting California for the Game Developers Conference (GDC) said: "(My friend) didn't come because they were afraid. There's not a single person I know who didn't waffle.
"Random people in my building told me to be careful... nobody who's paying attention is going to trust the U.S. for another ten years."
