The American Democracy Minute Radio Report & Podcast for April 25, 2025

President Donald Trump launched a cryptocurrency “meme coin” with his likeness on January 17th, just before inauguration day.  April 21st, with its value plummeting, the company offered top buyers of the coin a dinner with Trump and a personal tour of the White House.  That likely violates the Emoluments Clause.

The website for the meme coin loudly promotes a dinner with Trump at his Washington golf club for the top 220 owners of the coin, and for the top 25 owners, an “exclusive reception” and a “special VIP tour.”  But as of April 24th, any reference to touring White House was scrubbed from the site.  

With its value having fallen from $74.00 to a low of $7.66 on April 17, the price jumped after the announcement to $14.54 on April 23rd.  But it’s not the price of the coin that should worry Americans, but that corporations, special interests or foreign governments could exploit the offer as an opportunity to channel money to the notoriously transactional Trump in exchange for access and favors.

Jordan Libowitz of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington told  Mother Jones magazine, “This is about as unethical as you can get – essentially selling off access to the president.” 

We have a pre-scrubbing graphic,  and more on the Emoluments Clause, at  AmericanDemocracyMinute.org.  I’m Brian Beihl.

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:

April 23 – GetTrumpMemes.com via WaybackMachine.com – “Have Dinner With President Trump”

April 24 – GetTrumpMemes.com – “Have Dinner with President Trump” – Reference to White House Tour Scrubbed

American Constitution Society – (2019)  Profiting off the Presidency: Trump’s Violations of the Emoluments Clauses
Brennan Center for Justice – (2019)  How Will the Courts Handle the Trump Emoluments Cases?
American Democracy Minute – (2024) The Constitution’s Foreign Emoluments Clause was Intended to Stop Bribery and Corruption.  Recently, Not So Much
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) – (2024)  The intensifying threat of Donald Trump’s emoluments
Mother Jones – Trump Crypto Coin Buyers Offered VIP Tour of White House
CoinStats – TRUMP Meme Coin Tumbles After Soaring on Exclusive Gala Announcement

Groups Taking Action:

CREW, Public Citizen

Register or Check Your Voter Registration:

U.S. Election Assistance Commission – Register And Vote in Your State

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Find all of our reports at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org

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#Democracy  #DemocracyNews #Corruption #EmolumentsClause #DonaldTrump #TrumpMemeCoin

The post Trump ‘Meme Coin’ Cryptocurrency Scheme Selling Access to the President Raises Alarms for Emolument Clause Violations appeared first on American Democracy Minute.

The American Democracy Minute Radio Report & Podcast for Feb. 12, 2025

Today’s Script

(Variations occur with audio due to editing for time. Today’s Links below the script)

February 10th, the head of the Office of Government Ethics, a Senate-confirmed position, was fired by letter by President Donald Trump, likely illegally. In an even more questionable action the same day, the U.S. Department of Justice dropped federal corruption charges against New York City Mayor Eric Adams.

As we reported last December, Mayor Adams was accused by the Biden DOJ with taking campaign donations from foreign nationals and businessmen, allegedly using “straw donors” to make them appear as legitimate donations.  He was also accused of doing favors in exchange for luxury travel and attempting to conceal those transactions.  

January 17th, Adams traveled to meet with Trump at Mar-a-Lago, and recently, Adams expressed a willingness to work with the administration on immigration, contrary to New York City’s status as a sanctuary city. 

Now, DOJ has reversed course, citing a memo from Trump’s AG, “Restoring The Integrity and Credibility of the Department of Justice”,  and Trump’s executive order, “Ending The Weaponization of the Federal Government.” 

Also on Monday, David Huitema, the director of the Office of Government Ethics, confirmed by the Senate in December for a five year term, was notified of his firing by Trump. The head of the Office of Special Counsel, Hampton Dellinger,  fired by Trump February 7th, had his removal blocked by a federal judge on Monday.

We’ve linked DOJ’s memo dropping charges against Adams at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org.   I’m Brian Beihl.

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:

The Hill – Trump fires Office of Government Ethics chief
American Democracy Minute – (2024)  NYC’s Embattled Mayor Denied $4.5 Million in Matching Funds from City’s Public Campaign Finance Funding System
The Guardian – ‘Currying favor with Trump’: Eric Adams’ rightward drift sparks speculation as prosecution looms
CNN – Justice Department directs prosecutors to drop federal corruption case against New York City Mayor Eric Adams
U.S. Department of Justice  via CNN – Dismissal Without Prejudice of Prosecution of Mayor Eric Adams

Associated Press – Judge orders fired head of whistleblower agency reinstated while fight continues over Trump removal

Groups Taking Action:

Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, Brennan Center for Justice, Public Citizen 

Register or Check Your Voter Registration:

U.S. Election Assistance Commission – Register And Vote in Your State

Please follow us on Facebook and Bluesky Social, and SHARE! 

Find all of our reports at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org

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Are you a radio station?  Find our broadcast files at Pacifica Radio Network’s Audioport and PRX

#Democracy  #DemocracyNews #DraintheSwamp #DonaldTrump #EricAdams, #NYC #MoneyinPolitics #PoliticalCorruption

The post Trump Fires Office of Government Ethics Chief Monday; Hours Later, DOJ Drops Campaign Corruption Charges Against NYC Mayor Eric Adams appeared first on American Democracy Minute.

The American Democracy Minute Radio Report & Podcast for Feb 4, 2025

Today’s Script

(Variations occur with audio due to editing for time. Today’s Links below the script)

New Federal Election Commission filings by multi-billionaire and quasi Trump cabinet member Elon Musk show he and his companies spent at least $288 million dollars in the 2024 election cycle, even more than expected.

We reported last October that Musk poured millions into his America PAC, offering a borderline-legal $47-dollar bounty for referring unregistered voters to a website collecting personal contact information.  Open Secrets reports that Musk poured $118 million dollars into the PAC, just between July and October 2024.

Musk coughed up another $20 million dollars to fund the RBG PAC, funding misleading advertising suggesting Justice Ginsberg agreed with Trump on abortion.  

In October, Musk contributed another $925,000 dollars directly to a Trump PAC, Trump 47 Campaign Committee, Inc. 

Musk’s filings show that contributions in $10,000 dollar increments flowed to most state GOP committees around the country, many payments coming in late October.  

Curiously, the most recent filing shows Musk put another $45 million dollars in the America PAC AFTER the election, perhaps to make donations to the Trump inaugural fund, or begin funding the 2026 midterm cycle.  

Other notable donations included $2.3 million to the Sentinel Action Fund, $1 million to the Early Vote Action PAC, $825,000 to the Hispanic Leadership Alliance, and funding two Congressional campaigns.

Find links to the FEC and Open Secrets data for even more Musk contributions at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org.   I’m Brian Beihl

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:

Federal Election Commission – Individual Contributions of Elon Musk
Open Secrets – Top 2024 Election Cycle Contributors
Open Secrets – Organizations Disclosing Donations to America PAC (Texas), 2024
Open Secrets – 2024 Election Cycle Contributions Supporting Donald Trump 

Politico – Elon Musk was behind mysterious pro-Trump super PAC that invoked Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Groups Taking Action:

Issue One, Public Citizen, American Promise, End Citizens United, Equal Citizens

Register or Check Your Voter Registration:

U.S. Election Assistance Commission – Register And Vote in Your State

Please follow us on Facebook and Bluesky Social, and SHARE! 

Find all of our reports at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org

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Are you a radio station?  Find our broadcast files at Pacifica Radio Network’s Audioport and PRX

#Democracy  #DemocracyNews #BigMoneyCorruption #EndCitizensUnited #MoneyinPolitics  #ElonMusk

The post Elon Musk Spent Over a Quarter Billion Dollars in the 2024 Election – More Than Expected. Millions More Came After the Election appeared first on American Democracy Minute.

The American Democracy Minute Radio Report & Podcast for Nov. 26, 2024

Today’s Script

(Variations occur with audio due to editing for time. Today’s Links below the script)

You’re listening to the American Democracy Minute, keeping YOUR government by and for the people.

Federal election law governs campaign contributions directly to Presidential candidates.  But when an incoming administration refuses to follow the Presidential transition rules, those contributions become an unregulated spigot of special interest dark money. 

The Presidential Transition Act of 1963 allows money controlled by the General Services Administration to fund Presidential transition expenses, including office space, personnel, IT, and other support services to aid incoming and outgoing administrations.   It’s no small amount:   $10.4 Million dollars was budgeted for 2024, and $11.2 Million for 2025, according to the Congressional Research Service.   

Most of this money is contingent on the incoming administration signing a memo of understanding, and it comes with limits on outside donations of $5,000, and disclosure of contributors.  President-elect Trump’s transition team has thus far  refused to sign those agreements, flouting those limits.

So, it’s likely the transition is being funded by corporations, SuperPACs and other special interests, and Americans won’t have any idea how much is given, how it will be used, or what donors will get favors in return. The Federal Election Commission can’t oversee these contributions, and the GSA can’t enforce the Presidential Transition Act with no agreement. It’s one big, dark money, special interest swamp.   

We’ll explore inauguration funding in an upcoming report, for which dodging public scrutiny has become an art form. We have more at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org. I’m Brian Beihl.

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:

Congressional Research Service – Presidential Transition Act: Provisions and Funding
Center for Presidential Transitions – 2024 Presidential Transition Updates
FactCheck.org –  Cost of Obama’s Transition
Federal Election Commission – Presidential transition donations and disbursements are not regulated by the FEC.
States News – Trump still has not signed critical transition agreements allowing access to agencies
Rolling Stone – Trump Refuses to Disclose Who Is Funding His Transition
Campaign Legal Center – Trump Is Stalling His Presidential Transition With an Unprecedented Ethics Stalemate
The Independent – Trump accused of opening door to financial corruption as transition donors kept secret

Groups Taking Action:
Campaign Legal Center, Center for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (C.R.E.W), Public Citizen,  

Register or Check Your Voter Registration:

U.S. Election Assistance Commission – Register And Vote in Your State

Please follow us on Facebook and SHARE!  

Find all of our reports at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org

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Are you a radio station?  Find our broadcast files at Pacifica Radio Network’s Audioport and PRX

#Democracy  #DemocracyNews #DarkMoney #PresidentialTransition #Corruption #TrumpTransition

The post The Presidential Transition Turns Into One Big Dark Money Special Interest Swamp appeared first on American Democracy Minute.

The American Democracy Minute Radio Report & Podcast for July 18, 2024

Today’s Script

(Variations occur with audio due to editing for time. Today’s Links below the script)

You’re listening to the American Democracy Minute, keeping YOUR government by and for the people.

U.S. Senator Robert Menendez was convicted July 16th on all federal charges of conspiracy, bribery, extortion, wire fraud, obstruction and acting as a foreign agent in schemes involving an Egyptian-American businessman and a New Jersey developer.   

Damian Williams, U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, said after the verdict, “This wasn’t politics as usual, this was politics for profit.”  

In exchange cash and gold bars, Menendez used his influence as chair of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee to procure exclusive import of halal processed meat products into Egypt.  The New Jersey Monitor reports that Menendez then signed off on billions in U.S. military aid to the government of Egypt, despite the country’s deteriorating human rights record. 

The businessmen were found guilty of conspiracy and bribery, and Menendez’s wife, Nadine, will face trial after completing cancer treatment.  She allegedly acted as an intermediary in the transactions.  Menendez and the businessmen will be sentenced Oct. 29th.  A fifth conspirator, Jose Uribe, cooperated with authorities.  Menendez pressured the New Jersey Attorney General’s office to drop an insurance fraud case involving Uribe in exchange for a new Mercedes convertible for his wife Nadine.  

Menendez vows to appeal.  He remains on the 2024 New Jersey ballot, and while he stepped down as chair, remains on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.    We have a link to the jaw-dropping corruption indictment at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org.  I’m Brian Beihl.

Today’s Links

Articles & Resources:
U.S. Justice Department – U.S. Senator Robert Menendez, His Wife, And Three New Jersey Businessmen Charged With Bribery Offenses
U.S. District Court, Southern District of NY (via NJ Monitor) – Superceding Indictment for U.S. Senator Robert Menendez, Nadine Arslanian Menendez, Fred Daibes, and Wael Hana
New Jersey Monitor – Sen. Menendez convicted of bribery, all other charges in federal corruption trial
American Democracy Minute – Shades of Corruption: Menendez & Cuellar Prosecuted for Accepting Cash & Cars; Trump Reportedly Promises Climate Rollbacks for $1B in Campaign Contributions from Big Oil with Repercussions Unlikely
New Jersey Monitor – (2023)  Experts alarmed by claims that Menendez eased military aid to Egypt
USA.Gov – How federal impeachment works

Groups Taking Action:
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW),  Public Citizen

Please follow us on Facebook and Twitter and SHARE!  

Find all of our reports at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org

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Are you a radio station?  Find our broadcast files at Pacifica Radio Network’s Audioport and PRX

#Democracy  #DemocracyNews #NewJersey #NJNews #BobMenendez #Corruption #Bribery

The post ‘This wasn’t politics as usual, this was politics for profit.’  U.S. Senator Robert Menendez Convicted of Bribery & Conspiracy Charges.  appeared first on American Democracy Minute.