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This week has put on full display the Trump administration’s embrace of the white collar criminals, grifters, harmful extractive industries, and fascist tech bros jointly wreaking havoc on our social institutions and the environment.

The private sector rewards for public sector experience creates a conflict in which the public good and an employee’s own career prospects may be in tension. Not only does it incentivize public servants to consider the interests of the private sector (and how their decisions as a public servant might impact future employment prospects), but it erodes public confidence in civil servants.  

This week’s edition covers Trump’s latest grand gesture of corruption—gleeful acceptance of a $400 million gift from the Qatari royal family, Donald Jr.’s moves to cash in on his father’s office, various deregulatory actions across the executive branch, and Musk & company’s numerous conflicts of interest.

Trump started his second term in the White House by targeting law firms in retaliation for their past legal work and personnel decisions that displeased him. While some firms pushed back against these assaults on their independence, more than a few BigLaw firms caved. Within the first months of the year, they bowed to Trump’s demands, surrendering in order to avoid (potentially illegal) executive orders that could damage their business interests.

The Musk-damaged agency is unlikely to investigate whether Trump and his allies are profiting from advance knowledge about tariff changes or meme coin shenanigans.

This week, the Trump brothers Eric and Don Jr. embarked on a world tour to make real estate deals while the administration used the threat of tariffs to push Starlink into other countries. Trump allies engaged in price fixing and fraud were given a pass seemingly as a reward for their donations to the president, our retirement savings were placed under the eye of a greedy insurance executive, and consumer protections were targeted by House Republicans eager to find tax breaks for the rich.

RDP Executive Director Jeff Hauser testified about the Trump family’s use of cryptocurrency as a vehicle for blatant corruption

This week, the Trump family continued to blur the line between politics and business with Trump 2028 merch and a billion dollar deal with Binance and MGX. Trump Jr. and Eric Trump’s potential stock sales and a new elite Washington club further expose this convergence. President Trump’s pardons of allies, Elon Musk’s apparent sway over personnel picks, and the rollback of consumer and coal miner protections add to the ethical concerns.

A longtime Democratic-aligned donor, Bill Ackman publicly backed Donald Trump and the Republican Party in the 2024 election cycle. He stands to gain a lot from the potential privatization of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

The consequences of gutting FOIA offices are both obvious and unknowable.

Inspectors General are a crucial part of the apparatus that keeps the government accountable to the public it is supposed to serve. 

Inspectors General have spent decades building careful systems for overseeing the activities of the Executive branch, acting as crucial watchdogs that root out actual inefficiency, waste, fraud, corruption, and abuse throughout the government.

This past century of days, we have witnessed an administration wholly committed to executing this warped idea of governing. So let’s unpack a couple of ways that Donald Trump & Associates have promoted the corporate takeover of government.

An overview of Trump family ally, fundraiser, and business partner Omeed Malik. Malik was appointed to the board of Fannie Mae.