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WASHINGTON — Senators Adam Schiff and Elizabeth Warren are warning that President Donald Trump’s private dinner with holders of his meme coin may constitute “pay to play” corruption, and are calling for an ethics investigation.
The Democratic senators, from California and Massachusetts, respectively, sent a letter on Friday to the U.S. Office of Government Ethics, asking for a probe to determine if President Trump violated federal ethics rules by offering exclusive access to top investors in his $TRUMP coin.
The letter pertains to a promotion, announced on the meme coin’s website on Wednesday, offering the top 220 holders of the token dinner with the president on May 22 at his golf club near Washington, D.C. The coin jumped by 50% in value after the invitation was posted.
“President Trump’s announcement promises exclusive access to the presidency in exchange for significant investment in one of the President’s business ventures,” the senators wrote on Friday, in a letter shared with CNBC.
The value of the coin surged by more than $100 million after the announcement, raising concerns that Trump and his family are personally profiting from their political influence, the senators wrote.
“This latest action raises grave ethics and legal concerns, including the severe risk that President Trump and other officials may be engaging in ‘pay to play’ corruption by selling presidential access to individuals or entities, to include foreign nationals and corporate actors with vested interests in federal action, while personally enriching the President and his family,” the senators wrote.
They cite multiple public reports showing that some $TRUMP investors have ties to foreign exchanges or received funds from crypto platforms banned in the U.S., including Binance.
Senators Schiff and Warren are asking ethics officials whether any guidance has been provided to Trump or his family about profiting from digital assets while in office, and what safeguards exist to prevent individuals under investigation or seeking pardons from buying political access through investments.
With the White House and both chambers of Congress controlled by Republicans and with an ethics director appointed by the president, the letter from the Democratic senators is likely to fall on deaf ears.
Trump and his allies continue to push deeper into crypto markets. Last month, the Trump family announced plans to launch a stablecoin through its World Liberty Financial project.
Since its January debut, the $TRUMP meme coin has reportedly generated more than $350 million in fees for entities tied to the president and his inner circle. The project’s website claims that 80% of the token supply is held by the Trump Organization and affiliated entities.
The White House didn’t respond to a request for comment. The Office of Government Ethics declined to comment.
The OGE has made clear in past guidance that, while the president and vice president are exempt from federal conflict-of-interest laws that apply to other government officials and from the ethical standards set by executive order, it has advised that sitting presidents voluntarily adhere to those standards.
The ethics office can issue recommendations but has no authority to enforce financial divestment or prosecute conflicts involving a sitting president.
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