Trump's officials spent $1 billion in taxpayer money to stroke his ego: report

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: Raw Story

June 6, 2025 6:54PM ET


President Donald Trump's senior officials have marshaled taxpayer resources to the tune of $1 billion, just on various projects to keep Trump personally happy, Rolling Stone reported on Friday.

This comes after the president has already received widespread criticism for the self-aggrandizing aspects of his Cabinet meetings, including having them all sit in a room full of "Gulf of America" merchandise, referencing his executive order to rename the Gulf of Mexico. "Trump’s demands for flattery are costing a fortune," reported Ryan Bort, Asawin Suebsaeng, and Andrew Perez.

His new administration is only a few months in, and already the total price of just three such initiatives — a flashy, Trump-flattering ad campaign from the Department of Homeland Security, a gigantic military parade in Washington, D.C., on Trump’s birthday, and the repurposing of a palatial airplane from Qatar as Trump’s new Air Force One that he can use in his post-presidency — will easily top $1 billion. And that’s just the beginning.

"Political author Anthony DiMaggio said that these efforts “have to do with a president who needs to be not only at the center of a media circus, but who needs to be told ritualistically over and over how great he is. What’s interesting to me about this, as a political scientist, is that it’s not just a personality-based thing or a defect. It’s a broader pattern that has to do with behaviors that are overlapping with authoritarian politics and ideology.” According to the report, these policies to keep the president flattered pervade into everything.

Read more: https://www.rawstory.com/trump-ego/

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Link to Rolling Stone article - https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-features/donald-trump-dear-leader-bondi-noem-republican-propaganda-1235356187/

[Irish_Dem]

1. Money is no object when it comes to Trump being happy.

Enriching and flattering him.

When there is no money to run the federal government, no money for research, education, healthcare, etc.

[DENVERPOPS]

5. Who was the Frenchman?

back in the 1700's when we were first forming our nation, who said:

Democracy will work until some individual or group of individuals figures out that they can vote themselves money?

And here we are, with the very best politicians that money can buy.......At the complete mercy of the United Corporations of America, who are truly the ones running America.....

About 40 years ago, a friend gave me a copy of Kurt Vonnegut's JAILBIRD......LOL, it should be required reading..........reminds me of a lot in these troubled times, of the un-fathomable number of powerful Corporations, owned and operated by the UBER Rich Oligarchs.... Truly running America.....
Appropriately called by Vonnegut......the RAMJACK corporation at the very top.......

[Irish_Dem]

7. I thought Ben Franklin said it.

Yes the billionaires have bought off the politicians who are selling out the US lock, stock and barrel.
Down to the studs.

Yes the dystopian novels are coming true.

[DENVERPOPS]

9. I am guessing I_D

that this nightmare has haunted some of us daily since HWBush and his CABAL corruptly and treasonously stole the election from Carter in 1980.

[Irish_Dem]

10. Reagan stole the election from Carter with the secret hostage deal with Iran.

Yes it was treason.

HWBush ran against Dukakis.

[DENVERPOPS]

13. And THAT

was just the first of countless Treasonous Acts......I don't think most people have realized how much of a mastermind.. HW was in the take over of this "New" Republican Party........He and his CABAL were lurking in the shadows, behind curtains, and smokescreens, using mirrors and using Reagan and then WBush as front men/pawns.

HW was THE major thread through it all..... along with Merry band of criminals;, Cheney/Rumsfeld/Wolfowitz, Pearle, etc....
Alot of what they accomplished, esp the treason stuff was conducted by the CIA which HW was director of, prior to him becoming Reagan's VP and truly being the one to run the Reagan Years. Like wise with his understudy, Dick Cheney, who was truly running the government during the WBush years.....

Take care I_D, and stay safe, you hear!!!!!!

[Irish_Dem]

15. HW was head of the CIA.

Knew how to push all the levers of power and play all the criminal games, with no consequences.

Yes it has been a GOP crime syndicate since Reagan.

Yes Cheney ran the govt.
Bush Jr was drunk all the time.

[DENVERPOPS]

16. Do you remember

all of W's word salad, malapropos, and three word sentences.?

I asked a friend who is a noted addiction specialist, was it the cocaine or alcohol that fried his brain..............She said:
You don't see that with just alcohol, or just cocaine, but extreme use of alcohol AND cocaine at the same time.....

[Irish_Dem]

18. In all of the TV clips of Bush, I never saw him sober.

Yes he is a long time alcohol and cocaine addict.
It was easy for Cheney to take over,
Make a huge fortune invading Iraq.

[Lonestarblue]

2. Given Trump's spending and a Republican Congress adding trillions to the national debt, will the US soon be bankrupt?

This latest tax giveaway for the wealthy adds over $500 billion to interest payments. And if Republicans steal the 2026 elections and retain control of the House, they will pass another trillion dollar tax cut for the wealthy. At what point does the government become unable to pay its bills? Even after eliminating SS, Medicare, Medicaid, and all safety net programs, the debt is huge and a failing economy caused by trade wars will make matters worse.

[AllaN01Bear]

3. and yet for the las 40 years they have been screaming , we are in debit in late nite filabusters

[DENVERPOPS]

6. In my wildest nightmares

Trump corners the massive bit coin industry/supply in his personal coffers. He then declares the bit coin to be the national currency. The Federal Reserve needs a supply of bit coins to distribute to all the banks etc. Trump makes a deal, for him to sell the bit coins to the U.S. Government for all the GOLD in Fort Knox...........

I recall this on a much smaller scale when WBush and his CABAL directed by Cheney/Rumsfeld/Etc floated the idea of the RED One Hundred Dollar bills being released with little notice, to replace the green ones......with the green ones becoming worthless overnight....

[DENVERPOPS]

17. Soooo

basically a nation with the top one percent at the top, and the other 99% at the absolute bottom, all occupying the lower/lower class.
Serfs and peasants with a repeat of the Gilded Age of Robber Barrons and the resulting great depression of Hoovervilles everywhere across the entire nation...........It would be like a saturation of Homeless people everywhere, Like in the Grapes of Wrath.....

I have to believe, unless something changes, we are on the threshold of that already........

[Bengus81]

4. How much did those wittle curtains cost that covers the Declaration of Independence

in the Oval office?? You could probably get them on Amazon for $30.00 with the rod but they no doubt had some "designer" friend of Melania do the job for $100,000 or so.

[DENVERPOPS]

8. And just like during his inauguration

and first term in office, the taxpayers paid the 100K to Trump, who in turn paid the "Designer" a couple of hundred bucks, and he pockets the rest.
It is the sneaky way he does much of his grifting off the U.S. Government and Uber rich, to launder the money.......

Another one, was when he convinced the Secret Service that they needed "speedier" golf carts to protect him.........
So the Secret Service contracted for a fleet of State of the Art, incredibly deluxe, custom designed, bigger engined Golf Carts at all the Golf Courses owned and frequented by Trump..............

He made a complete and absolute FARCE out of the Emollent (sp?) clause, almost daily, sometimes hourly......

[Justice matters.]

12. There's a limited supply of Bitcoins.

So it would not be only Bitcoins.

Here's a list of all the crypto scams:

https://coinmarketcap.com/all/views/all/

Would it be just the Bitcoins or all of them?

[DENVERPOPS]

14. Not sure

It was just a nightmare dream......LOL

[twodogsbarking]

11. Couldn't he just order another Russan bride. That would be cheaper and you get a free trophy.