'A way for Mar-A-Lago to get paid': Don Jr.’s role in 'anti-woke' firm 'raises serious questions'

12 May

Donald Trump Jr. at CPAC on March 2, 2023 (Lev Radin/Shutterstock.com)

In November 2024, Donald Trump Jr. became a partner in a Palm Beach, Florida-based investment firm startup named 1789 Capital. And its stated goal was to invest in "anti-woke" businesses.

The company has grown since then. And according to Business Insider reporter Bethany McLean, 1789 is raising questions about the possibility of President Donald Trump's family "improperly making money by funneling government business to the companies it invests in."

In an article published on May 12, McLean reports, "It's not just legal experts who have concerns about the money flowing to Don Jr. One veteran Wall Street investor, who has personally reviewed 1789's deals, says they enable the president's son to profit from the (Trump) Administration's actions — even if no contractors are given preferential treatment."

A Wall Street investor, interviewed on condition of anonymity, went over 1789's deals and told Business Insider, "It's a way for Mar-A-Lago to get paid."

Laura Dickinson, a law professor at George Washington University in Washington, DC, told Business Insider, "This certainly raises serious concerns about the appearance of corruption, because Trump's family is benefiting. And when you look at this in the context of arbitrary cuts to other programs, it raises questions about whether preferential treatment is being given to family and others who curry favor with Trump."

According to McLean, 1789 has close ties to billionaire Elon Musk — who heads SpaceX, Tesla and X.com and recently led the Trump Administration-associated Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

"One of 1789's biggest bets in its push to monetize MAGA has come courtesy of Musk," McLean observes. "According to Bloomberg, the firm has invested more than $50 million in SpaceX and xAI — the kind of opportunity usually reserved for deep-pocketed insiders, not tiny funds with no track record. The move comes at a time when the Trump Administration — which has empowered Musk and DOGE to redirect vast swaths of federal spending — has reportedly been moving to channel billions in taxpayer dollars to SpaceX for the use of its Starlink satellite system."

McLean adds, "In addition, the company has been awarded a $5.9 billion contract from the U.S. Space Force to launch critical national security payloads. The deal, announced April 4, makes SpaceX the Pentagon's leading launch provider, surpassing an industry rival owned by Boeing and Lockheed."

The president's son, McLean reports, is "far from a passive bystander in 1789."

"According to Politico, he and his fellow partners at the investment firm have launched an invite-only club called the Executive Branch that will cost more than half a million dollars to join," the Business Insider reporter notes. "Located in Georgetown, the high-end club will enable business and tech moguls to schmooze with (Trump) Administration insiders behind closed doors — and simultaneously creating a source of potential deals for 1789."

Read the full Business Insider article at this link (subscription required).

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