In a report headlined, “Trump has already conquered D.C. even before taking office,” the Washington Post mentions the word ‘transactional’ only once:
“For most of corporate America, they didn’t know what to make of the first one,” said Marc Short, who was chief of staff to former vice president Mike Pence. “They’ve learned that President Trump is very transactional, and so I think there’s an incentive for them to be a lot more generous this inauguration.”
And transactional is the key Trump trait that has led to conquering D.C., corporate titans, oligarchs, Congressional Republicans, et al. Money, of course, is what most interests Trump. And for everyone seeking favor (or fending off disfavor) from the vindictive president, throwing money at Trump — lots of money — is imperative.
Not quite two weeks ago, I cited a New York Times report that Trump had reeled in more than $200 million since election day. Four days ago, Axios reported that the figure is now $500 million. Money raised for his inaugural committees tops $150 million, far and away a record.
Two additional quotes from the Washington Post report:
1.
“They have the potential to really become a free-for-all for influence-buying with an incoming administration,” said Saurav Ghosh, director of federal campaign finance reform at the Campaign Legal Center. “It’s a sure bet, unlike a campaign contribution. You know the recipient is going to be the president and obviously will have a lot of influence over various policies that are going to impact a corporation’s financial future.”
and
2.
“What he enjoys is the campaign and the winning; the governing part can be messy,” Short said. “He likes it when he wins. When he passes a big bill like tax relief, that’s a win. When he gets a Supreme Court justice confirmed, that’s a win. But the everyday, if it’s not centered around him, it’s kind of, in his mind, boring.”
The first quotation illustrates corporate America’s strong incentive when shoveling money Trump’s way to make sure it gets into his pocket.
The second quotation acknowledges Trump’s indifference to public policy. He’s selling favor. The issue doesn’t matter to him. He’s willing to change his mind about EVs (as a quid pro quo with Elon Musk) or TikTok (after meeting with GOP mega-donor Jeff Yass) or — you name it — so long as you’re willing to pay up. Being indifferent to issues of national significance is advantageous if you’re looking to maximize money pouring into your pocket.
On another note: introducing the Trump Meme
Finally, a scheme where the quid pro quo lacks the quo expected of Trump. In this case, something for something means gobs of money (billions!) funneled to Trump in return for … a commemorative coin. (No, I’m not a fan of cryptocurrency.) Let’s grant that this is not a standard-issue transactional exchange.
Last night Trump and company introduced the Trump Meme — a commemorative coin, Trump-branded cryptocurrency for his fans. Already there is speculation about whether the Trump Coin can “challenge Dogecoin’s supremacy in the meme coin ecosystem.”
Overnight, the value of Trump’s stake in this new venture rose to “more than $25 billion on paper for himself and his companies.” And Eric Trump for one is enthusiastic:
“I am extremely proud of what we continue to accomplish in crypto,” Eric Trump said in a statement to The New York Times. “$Trump is currently the hottest digital meme on earth.” He added: “This is just the beginning.”
You can count on that.
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