How Trump ‘earned’ millions from China, Saudi Arabia while being US president

Donald Trump, the former US president and contender for the 2024 presidential polls, has long been seen as someone being tough on China, accusing them of being a ‘currency manipulator’. However, it seems, that while Trump may have been hurtling accusations at Beijing for unfair trade practices, he may have been profiting off them – according to a new report released by House Oversight Democrats.

The report, which comes at a time when Trump is vying to be the Republican candidate for the 2024 polls, reveals that businesses tied to the former president –which he never fully divested from while in office — received at least $7.8 million (Rs 65 crore) in payments directly from at least 17 foreign governments, including China, Saudi Arabia and others, over the course of his presidency.

We take a closer look at the report’s findings – what they reveal – and the possible impact of it on Trump’s 2024 chances.

What has the report revealed?

The 156-page report called ‘White House For Sale: How Princes, Prime Ministers, and Premiers Paid Off President Trump’ was produced by Democrats on the House Oversight Committee and is a culmination of a years-long probe by the Democrats into whether Trump personally profited from his time in public office.

Congressman Jamie Raskin in the foreword of the report has said that the findings are drawn from actual receipts and records and show that foreign governments and their entities spent big amounts of money at Trump hotels and apartments.

The report states that some of the biggest contributors to Trump’s business were China, Saudi Arabia, Congo, Malaysia, Albania and Kosovo, Qatar, Kuwait and even India. Of these, China was the biggest spender – spending a total of $5,572,548 (Rs 46 crore) at Trump Tower and the Trump International Hotels in Washington, DC and Las Vegas.

The report states that besides the People’s Republic of China, state-owned Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) and Hainan Airlines Holding Company also paid substantial amounts at Trump properties.

According to the report, the spending in 2017 and 2018 occurred as Trump launched and then de-escalated a trade war against Beijing, before striking out at China again during the coronavirus pandemic.

Saudi Arabia was the second-largest spender, shelling out more than $615,000 (Rs 5 crore) at the Trump World Tower and Trump International Hotel. Interestingly, a significant amount of these payments came in 2017 when it signed a massive arms deal with the Trump administration.

The report also reveals that at least $210,000 (Rs 1.74 crore) of payments to Trump-related businesses came in 2018 – when Trump publicly doubted US intelligence assessments that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman ordered the murder and dismemberment of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi.

Moreover, since leaving office, former President Trump’s business ties with the Saudi royal family have only deepened , as Trump-owned golf courses have hosted events organised by LIV, a golf tour funded by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund.

Qatar, Kuwait and India are the next three biggest spenders, the report adds, with Doha spending more than $460,000 (Rs 3.82 crore), Kuwait spending more than $300,000 (Rs 2.49 crore), and the government of India spending $282,764 (Rs 2.35 crore) — mostly on monthly rent for two apartments at Trump Tower.

The report alleges that the former president’s ties to these countries may have affected the Trump administration’s policies towards the nations funnelling money into his properties.

Has Trump broken any rules?

Jamie Raskin, the top Democrat on the House oversight committee, wrote in the report, “By elevating his personal financial interests and the policy priorities of corrupt foreign powers over the American public interest, former President Trump violated both the clear commands of the Constitution and the careful precedent set and observed by every previous Commander-in-Chief.”

According to Democrats, Trump is in violation of Article 1, Section 9, Clause 8 of the Constitution, which forbids the president to accept money payments or gifts of any kind whatever from foreign governments and monarchs unless he obtains the consent of the Congress to do so.

The report adds that despite this, Trump, while holding the office of president, used his business entities to pocket millions of dollars from foreign states and royalty and never once went to Congress to seek its consent. “This report sets forth the records showing foreign government money and all the spoils from royals we can find pouring into hotels and buildings that the president continued to own during his presidency, all in direct violation of the Constitutional prohibition,” read a statement from the report.

What is Trump, Republicans saying?

While Donald Trump hasn’t reacted to the report yet, his son, Eric Trump, has argued that the former US president had not allowed his personal business incentives to drive his official actions.

“That narrative is insane,” Eric Trump was quoted as saying by The New York Times of the Democrats’ report. He added that “there is no president in United States history who was tougher on China than Donald Trump,” citing the substantial tariffs the former president imposed on the country’s goods and services. He also said the Trump Organization did “not have the ability or viability to stop someone from booking through third parties” at the hotel.

Referring to the payments made by Chinese bank Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), which was mentioned in the report, Trump’s son said that the bank had signed a 20-year lease at Trump Tower in 2008, almost a decade before his father took office.

Republicans supporting Trump also laughed off the report, calling it “beyond parody”. James Comer, the top Republican on the oversight committee said, “Former President Trump has legitimate businesses, but the Bidens do not.” Alluding to Hunter Biden’s dealings with foreign countries, he added that the Bidens “and their associates” made millions more from shady countries without providing anything but access to Joe Biden.

Will these findings hurt Trump for 2024?

It’s not yet clear what could be the impact of these findings for Trump’s 2024 presidential run. However, it seems likely that it will raise doubts in the minds of some people at the voting booth.

Moreover, it’s also just an added headache to Trump, who is already facing multiple legal challenges. These include a civil fraud trial in New York, a conspiracy trial in Washington to overturn the 2020 election results, and charges in Florida for mishandling government documents. There’s also racketeering charges him in Georgia.

Trump has also been removed from the ballot in two states before the 2024 polls – Maine and Colorado. He was found guilty of insurrection or a violent uprising. However, the former president said he would file an objection against the recent decision, terming it “atrocious”.

With inputs from agencies