During his second presidency, substantial personal wealth has remained a prized attribute for Donald Trump alongside political loyalty. According to a report by consumer advocacy group Public Citizen, the Republican president has appointed more than four times as many people worth at least $100 million to his administration as the three previous presidents combined. These figures for the Trump administration stand out compared to earlier administrations within the report from Public Citizen, published on Monday.
In total, 57 Trump administration officials are worth at least $100 million, including 17 ambassadors alongside the remaining 40 serving in senior posts across the executive branch. Look no further than Trump's Cabinet. Eight of its 23 members fit the category, notably Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Education Secretary Linda McMahon, both billionaires.
The president, himself a billionaire, has described his inclination toward appointing the ultra-wealthy as deference to financial success. And yet, Trump, who owes his White House comeback to support from middle-income, working Americans drawn to his pledge to lower everyday costs, now faces a midterm election electorate decidedly less keen on his handling of the economy. Presidents have long sought counsel from the nation’s wealthiest people and tapped some for high-profile administrative leadership roles.
Likewise, presidents routinely reward wealthy and influential supporters with ambassadorships. Among the most notable examples is Andrew Mellon, the aluminum, oil and banking tycoon who was among the handful of the nation’s wealthiest people in the 1920s and served as treasury secretary for three presidents. The Trump officials worth at least $100 million include Deputy Secretary of Defense Stephen Feinberg and Small Business Administration Administrator Kelly Loeffler, who are also billionaires, and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and special envoy Steve Witkoff, both worth hundreds of millions of dollars.
By comparison, Republican George W. Bush’s administration and Democrat Joe Biden’s each included five members worth $100 million or more. Democrat Barack Obama’s included three, the report states.
A government populated by so many of the economic elite presents potential problems, the report's authors said. "When the people holding the reins of government are drawn overwhelmingly from the ranks of the ultra-rich, it leads to misplaced incentives and corruption, and begs the question, ‘Whose interests they are truly serving?” said Lisa Gilbert, Public Citizen’s co-president. The list does not include Trump, whose net worth Forbes estimates at more than $6 billion.
Extract — continue reading at the source.
