Latest news with #Trump-sponsored
Yahoo
19-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Black Folks Respond to Trump's Plan to Take Revenge Against Certain Certain A-List Celebs
Months have passed since Beyoncé and other celebrities endorsed former Vice President Kamala Harris for president. But now, in a late night, President Donald Trump revealed major plans for revenge aimed at some major celebrities. And as expected, many people— especially Black folks— are giving side eyes. Last year's campaign cycle was one for the books. From assassination attempts to Harris bringing Beyoncé and Kelly Rowland to her Texas rally, the country is still reeling from 2024... and so is Trump. In fact, the president took to Truth Social around 1:30a.m. on Monday (May. 19) to get some things off his chest. 'HOW MUCH DID KAMALA HARRIS PAY BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN FOR HIS POOR PERFORMANCE DURING HER CAMPAIGN FOR PRESIDENT,' he asked. 'WHY DID HE ACCEPT THAT MONEY IF HE IS SUCH A FAN OF HERS? ISN'T THAT A MAJOR AND ILLEGAL CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTION? WHAT ABOUT BEYONCÉ? ...AND HOW MUCH WENT TO OPRAH, AND BONO???' So now, he's calling for a formal investigation into Harris' campaign endorsements. Trump continued, 'I am going to call for a major investigation into this matter. Candidates aren't allowed to pay for ENDORSEMENTS, which is what Kamala did, under the guise of paying for entertainment.' But while Trump was busy calling Harris' actions 'illegal,' other folks took to social media to remind the president of his own track record. On X, @ArtCandee asked, 'Should we be asking how much he paid for his D-list 'entertainment' like Kid Rock and Lee Greenwood?' Harris wasn't the only candidate with celebrity endorsements. Who can forget when Kodak Black and Fivio Foreign endorsed Trump with their song, 'ONBOA47RD?' Or when Soulja Boy, Nelly and Snoop Dogg were paid to perform at the Trump-sponsored Crypto Ball in January. 'Obama ain't never put no money in my f*****g pocket... Kamala ain't never put no money in my f*****g pocket,' Soulja told his followers in January. Trump continued on Truth Social, 'In addition, this was a very expensive and desperate effort to artificially build up her sparse crowds. IT'S NOT LEGAL! For these unpatriotic 'entertainers,' this was just a CORRUPT & UNLAWFUL way to capitalize on a broken system.' @TheGeekRevolt tweeted in confusion, 'Didn't Elon literally pay for votes?' referring to when the Tesla CEO handed out literal $1 million checks to voters in Wisconsin back in March, according to AP News. Another user brought up when Musk launched a million dollar sweepstakes in November on Trump's behalf. 'Didn't el*n pay people from pennsylvania $1 million to vote for trump?? which he later thanked him for after inauguration,' @Heytommo31 tweeted. Other folks online called Trump 'a sore WINNER.' @YallQunt said, 'like who gives a s**t….b***h fix healthcare, minimum wage, the housing crisis, and the many REAL problems American citizens CARE ABOUT.' Many warned Trump really doesn't want the smoke with Queen Bey and the beyhive. 'The BeyHive is not going to be happy!!!! That's a fight I think trump won't win,' @DjOmegaMVP said. In the middle of what seems like Trump chaos, @ChidiNwatu asked folks what's the real reason behind Trump's frustrations. 'Anyone know what he's trying to distract us from this week?' @JessicaTarlov tweeted 'Donald Trump spent the night ranting about investigating Beyonce so that you would forget that House Republicans just moved a bill forward that would cut Medicaid.' For the latest news, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
New York Times
21-04-2025
- Business
- New York Times
Trump Raised $239 Million for Inauguration, More Than Doubling His Own Record
President Trump raised $239 million for his inauguration festivities in January, a norm-shattering amount fueled by corporate America's desire to curry favor with a famously transactional president. The total, disclosed in a filing with the Federal Election Commission on Sunday, is more than double the previous record of $107 million set by Mr. Trump's inaugural committee in 2017. About 140 different people or companies gave at least $1 million to the effort, including blue-chip companies like JPMorgan Chase, Delta Air Lines and Target. The committee, known formally as the Trump-Vance Inaugural Committee, is required by federal law to report the names of donors and the dollar amounts for contributions over $200 to the F.E.C. no more than 90 days after the Jan. 20 ceremony. It is not required to report how it spent the money. Many of the donations to Mr. Trump's inauguration were previously announced — such as $1 million each from tech giants like Meta and Amazon — in part because companies wanted it known widely that they were backing Mr. Trump's formal return to power. But the report revealed a few names not well-publicized, including several friends of Elon Musk, such as tech investors like John Hering, Ken Howery and Keith Rabois, who each gave $1 million. (Neither Mr. Musk, a top presidential adviser, nor any of his companies donated.) The three largest contributions came from a poultry producer, Pilgrim's, which donated $5 million; a crypto company, Ripple Inc., which donated just under that; and Warren Stephens, a Republican donor who gave $4 million on the same day, Dec. 2, that Mr. Trump named him as his pick to be ambassador to Britain. Inaugurations, even with several days of elaborate dinners and other events, have never cost anything near roughly a quarter-billion dollars, and the amount raised by the committee will resurface questions about where any leftover funds might go. The committee has not said how much money it has spent, but the president's allies have said that the remaining amount will be funneled to other Trump-sponsored projects, primarily a nonprofit organization that will build his presidential library. Contributions to inaugural festivities have long been used by corporate interests to cultivate allies in an incoming administration, but the amount raised by Mr. Trump is exceedingly high by historical standards. George W. Bush, for instance, collected $30 million in 2001 (roughly $55 million in today's dollars). Four years ago, Joseph R. Biden Jr. collected $62 million (nearly $76 million in 2025 dollars) for his inauguration, though that celebration was pared down because of the coronavirus pandemic. President Trump's total in 2017 was twice as much as any president-elect had ever raised for an inauguration. The $346 million raised by his two inaugural committees is more than the nominal amount raised by all other inaugural committees combined since Richard M. Nixon's $4 million in 1973. The haul this year by Mr. Trump's inaugural committee was so large that some seven-figure donors were not guaranteed access to premier events because those functions were full. Mr. Trump's committee accepted a total of roughly $245 million, but issued about $6 million in refunds.
Gulf Insider
16-02-2025
- Politics
- Gulf Insider
Saudi Arabia To Host Arab Summit To Discuss Trump's Gaza 'Takeover' Plan
Saudi Arabia has revealed it plans to host leaders of four Arab countries at a summit on February 20 to consider President Donald Trump's US 'takeover' plan for the Gaza Strip, officials told AFP Friday. 'The leaders of Egypt, Jordan, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates will attend the summit, to take place ahead of an Arab League meeting in Cairo one week later on the same issue, the source said,' as also cited in Al Jazeera . Palestinian Authority (PA) president Mahmud Abbas is also expected to attend, at a moment the fragile Gaza truce deal could collapse at any moment, particularly after some of Trump's inflammatory statements on turning Gaza into the 'Riviera of the Mediterranean' which would require removal of all Palestinians. Proposals to be considered at the summit could involve a Gulf-led reconstruction fund, as well as a political deal for Hamas' exit from power, according to several officials. Trump has been pressuring Egypt and Joran in particular, threatening to cut off crucial foreign and defense aid if they don't come on board his plan. He wants these neighboring states to absorb over 1.2 displaced Palestinians. Yesterday in an extraordinarily surprising development, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) ambassador to Washington signaled the possibility of removing all Palestinians from Gaza, in accordance with Trump's controversial Gaza plan. UAE Ambassador to the US Yousef Al Otaiba in an interview called the plan 'difficult but inevitable' and said he's sees 'no alternative' but Trump's plan to expel Gaza's population and undertake massive economic redevelopment of the Strip. He had been asked by a reporter whether the UAE is working on a separate plan, to which he responded no, there's no other plan. It was in September 2020 that the UAE announced the Trump-sponsored Abraham Accords for normalization with Israel. UAE has long been a close regional US-ally, but the ambassador's words are still deeply surprising and might actually contradict the UAE's current official stance. Huge decline in life expectancy for Palestinians in Gaza: A new study published in the Lancet finds that life expectancy in Gaza dropped by nearly half, from 75.5 years to 40.6 years, during the first twelve months of the genocide. Apocalyptic. Link below. — Jason Hickel (@jasonhickel) February 13, 2025 But it seems the Saudi hosted Arab summit is precisely about coming up with an 'alternative' plan which could be offered instead of Trump's – which has sparked global backlash given the ethnic cleansing aspect of it.
Gulf Insider
14-02-2025
- Politics
- Gulf Insider
UAE Says Arab World Has No Alternative To Trump's Gaza Plan
In an extraordinarily surprising development, the United Arab Emirates (UAE has signaled the possibility of removing all Palestinians from Gaza, in accordance with Trump's controversial Gaza plan. UAE Ambassador to the US Yousef Al Otaiba in a fresh interview called the plan 'difficult but inevitable' and said he's sees 'no alternative' but Trump's plan to expel Gaza's population and undertake massive economic redevelopment of the Strip. He had been asked by a reporter whether the UAE is working on a separate plan, to which he responded no, there's no other plan. It was in September 2020 that the UAE announced the Trump-sponsored Abraham Accords for normalization with Israel. UAE has long been a close regional US-ally, but the ambassador's words are still deeply surprising and might actually contradict the UAE's official stance. For example, regional media just yesterday reported: The UAE, a key ally of both Israel and the United States in the Muslim world, has taken a firm stance against U.S. President Donald Trump's reported plan for Gaza. In a phone call with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan strongly rejected any attempt to displace Palestinians or deny them their 'inalienable rights.' The country's leadership has just this week called for a two-state solution. And per Reuters: It said the UAE, one of the few Arab countries that normalised relations with Israel, categorically rejected any attempt to displace the Palestinians and deny them 'inalienable rights'. It could be that in breaking from the official government position, Amb Otaiba is trying to curry favor in Washington, or else he could be signaling to the White House that the UAE is ready to jump on board the US plan if other regional governments to as well. But Arab nations have been pretty lockstep on the issue, and Jordan and Egypt in particular are not budging in terms of their vehement rejection of the Trump plan. The White House itself appears to have moved the goal posts of late: 'Right before walking away from the podium at the White House press briefing on Wednesday, press secretary Karoline Leavitt said she had one more note to add: US President Donald Trump, she said, has tasked Arab nations to present him with a plan for the Gaza Strip,' Middle East Eye reports. Read more here: Also read: UAE's new Blue Visa: Everything you need to know about it
