Trump Used Presidential Seal At Meme Coin Dinner—A Potential Violation Of Federal Law
Topline
President Donald Trump spoke to investors of his $TRUMP meme coin from a lectern adorned with the presidential seal at Trump National Golf Club Thursday—despite a federal law prohibiting it from being used in a way that erroneously suggest federal sponsorship.
Key Facts
The seal can't be used in a way that could 'convey a false impression of sponsorship of approval by the government,' according to federal law, which says violations can be penalized by a fine or up to six months in jail.
Trump spoke to the top 220 investors of his meme coin at his Virginia golf club after flying there from the White House on a military helicopter.
'The past administration made your lives miserable,' Trump told the attendees, referring to crypto regulations under Biden, according to The New York Times, adding, 'we're honored to be working on helping everybody here.'
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt rejected conflict-of-interest concerns about the dinner, telling reporters Thursday when asked if the administration would release the guest list that, 'the president is attending it in his personal time, it is not a White House dinner, it's not taking place here at the White House.'
Forbes has reached out to the White House about the seal being used at the dinner.
Big Number
$148 million. That's the total amount invested in $TRUMP coin by the investors who attended the dinner, according to the Wall Street Journal, citing Inca Digital analytics firm.
Chief Critic
Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., said during a Foreign Relations Committee hearing this week the dinner was a way for 'foreign individuals of significant influence and wealth to be able to directly lobby the President of the United States.'
Tangent
The seal has been used as golf markers in at least five other Trump golf clubs, Forbes reported previously.
Key Background
Trump's meme coin is among several crypto ventures he's launched since his first term in the White House, when he was a skeptic of the industry. The meme coin traded as high as $74.34 shortly after its debut in January, and fell to $14.44 on Thursday. Guests at Thursday's dinner included Chinese crypto billionaire Justin Sun, the top investor in $TRUMP coins, former NBA player Lamar Odom, Korean crypto executive Sangrok Oh and Taiwanese crypto executive Vincent Liu, according to The New York Times. The top 25 investors were invited to a pre-dinner reception and tour. Sun, who runs the crypto platform Tron and spent more than $40 million on $TRUMP coins, also spoke at the dinner. Sun—who was sued for fraud by the Securities and Exchange Commission in 2023—also invested $75 million in the Trump family's World Liberty Financial. The regulator paused litigation shortly after Trump took office.
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