The Dictatorship

Eric Trump shouldn’t be visiting China with his dad

Published

3 months ago

April 16, 2026

Apr. 16, 2026, 6:00 AM EDT

Next month President Donald Trump is scheduled to make what will be the first trip by a U.S. president to China in eight years. It’s going to be a high-stakes visit, during which he’s likely to discuss trade, fentanyl trafficking, and Iran policy with Chinese President Xi Jinping. And for some reason he’s bringing along his son Eric Trump.

Eric Trump is not a member of his father’s administration. He’s the executive vice president of the Trump Organization, whose holdings include real estate properties and blockchain. A Trump Organization spokeswoman told Reuters this week that Eric Trump will be joining his father in a “personal capacity as a supportive son.” She added that Eric Trump “does not have business ventures in China nor plans on doing business in China” and “will not be participating in private meetings.”

The Trump Organizations says Eric Trump is not taking private meetings and not there to do business, but there’s no way to hold him to his word.

None of that is consolation to anyone concerned about the conflicts of interest that would come with Eric Trump’s attendance: This trip creates all kinds of possibilities for deal-making that could undermine the public interest. And we know Trump knows this, too — if for no other reason than his obsession with slamming the Biden family for Hunter Biden accompanying then-Vice President Joe Biden to China.

In 2019, Donald Trump called for China to investigate the Biden family based on the appearance that Hunter Biden was engaged in inappropriate business dealings during that 2013 trip. Less than two weeks after that trip, Biden’s son secured funding from the government-owned Bank of China for a private equity fund he helped launch as founding board member. Hunter Biden said that during his father’s official trip he met investment banker Jonathan Li for a “cup of coffee.” After the trip, Li became chief executive of the fund and Hunter Biden became a board member. While his position was initially unpaid, afterwards, in 2017, he acquired a 10% stake in the fund.

There’s no evidence Joe Biden used his power as vice president to help his son negotiate that business deal, and there’s no evidence that any law was broken. And unsurprisingly, as he inveighed against Hunter Biden, President Trump made a host of unsubstantiated claims about how much Biden’s son made and how he made it.

But setting aside Donald Trump’s misinformation and bad faith intentions, it’s a legitimate observation that there was something that appeared unseemly about Hunter Biden’s business in China. There’s no way to rule out the possibility Hunter Biden was trading on his surname or his seat on Air Force Two during that trip as he angled for investment from China; indeed, that was inextricable from the entire dynamic. Nor is there any way to rule out that Hunter Biden privately offered or insinuated quid pro quos to Chinese authorities in exchange for its government providing capital for his fund. This is why public officials and their families must avoid potential conflicts of interest as rigorously as possible — because the appearance of possible impropriety allows corruption to thrive. (Hunter Biden later denied any impropriety, but said, “I gave a hook to some very unethical people to act in illegal ways to try to do some harm to my father.”)

But legitimate concerns about Hunter Biden’s behavior don’t excuse Eric Trump visiting China with his father; it makes the trip less excusable. At minimum, critics should hold themselves to the standards they demand of others. The Trump Organizations says Eric Trump is not taking private meetings and not there to do business, but there’s no way to hold him to his word, nor is there any way to prevent Chinese government officials or businessmen from privately approaching him with potential deals.

One of Eric Trump’s many business interests that could obviously pose a conflict of interest is American Bitcoin, the bitcoin mining company he co-owns, which works closely with the Chinese company Bitmain, a manufacturer of cryptocurrency mining hardware. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., has lobbied the Trump administration to look into the ways Bitmain could pose national security risks to U.S. infrastructure. This all means that the Trump family has a financial incentive to downplay national security questions surrounding this company in order to, for example, secure a more profitable partnership.

Even if Eric Trump does not make any concrete business plans immediately, there’s no way to rule out the possibility of future deals or deals through third parties that are harder to trace. Recall, for example, the remarkable ability of the president’s son-in-law Jared Kushner to attract a huge amount of Saudi investment to his unimpressive fledgling private equity fund after he left office during Trump’s first term. It certainly seemed like Kushner was cashing in on the friendship he formed with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman when he worked in the Trump administration. (Kushner and the fund have said they have complied with all laws and requirements.)

In fact, it’s hard to imagine a scenario where Chinese government officials aren’t thinking about how to use a relationship with Eric Trump to influence his father’s policy decisions. Donald Trump has made his second term unfathomably corrupt, and he has brazenly profited off his presidency. Trump has a media companyseveral cryptocurrency businessesand opaque merchandise businesses. He has reportedly insinuated to oil executives that his policies are for sale. He has secured money from legal settlements that look more like tributes to a king than reasonable financial or legal agreements. The New York Times estimates that Trump has made at least $1.4 billion using the presidency, while The New Yorker estimates that Trump’s family has made at least $4 billion by leveraging his position as president. (The Times notes that “the Trumps and their business partners have disputed some of these estimates.”)

In light of this reality, Eric Trump’s decision to accompany his father doesn’t just look inappropriate, it looks like a signal for investors. Why else bring Eric Trump along on a state visit? He could always visit on his own, privately. But then there would be less opportunity to further blur the line between private and public interests, and less opportunity for Trump’s family members to line their pockets.

Zeeshan Aleem is a writer and editor for MS NOW. He primarily writes about politics and foreign policy.

The Dictatorship

Trump says US will blockade Iran in the Strait of Hormuz and charge ships for safe passage

Published

3 hours ago

July 14, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

Trump says US will blockade Iran in the Strait of Hormuz and charge ships for safe passage

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The U.S. launched strikes on Iran early Tuesday morning, hours after President Donald Trump said Washington is “reinstating” a blockade on Iran in the Strait of Hormuz. Trump separately suggested the United States will charge other ships for safe passage, upending hundreds of years of American policy supporting freedom of navigation across the globe.

Iran responded with attacks targeting Bahrain, Jordan and two tankers associated with the United Arab Emirates traveling through the strait, killing one mariner and wounding eight others. The Emirates threatened to retaliate against Iran, potentially drawing the nation home to Abu Dhabi and Dubai back into fighting with Tehran.

The attacks come as Iran and the U.S. both vie for control of the strait through which a fifth of all traded crude oil and natural gas once passed in peacetime. The price of benchmark Brent crude oil rose to a one-month high of over $84 in trading early Tuesday, still well below the nearly $120 reached at the height of the war but threatening to make costs everywhere higher.

Trump insists strait will be open

The U.S. military’s Central Command said it struck areas around Abu Musa, Bandar Abbas, Bushehr, Chahbahar, Jask and Konarak, targeting Iranian “coastal defense systems, missile and drone sites and maritime capabilities.” Iran acknowledged strikes around those areas, but provided no immediate casualty or damage assessments.

“These strikes will continue imposing a heavy cost on Iranian forces and degrade their ability to attack innocent civilians and commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz,” the U.S. military said.

Moments after the military announced the new strikes, Trump called it “another major attack.”

“We’re hitting them very hard. And it’ll continue, and we’ll see what happens,” he told reporters in the Oval Office. “We’re knocking out all of their offensive capability and we’re controlling the straits. We’re putting the blockade back.”

Trump also provided new details on his administration doing an about-face and suggesting it will charge tolls for ships going through the strait, after previously suggesting that it wouldn’t.

“We’re protecting a very rich portion of the world,” he said. “We’re spending money. And so, what we’ve done is, we are going to be reimbursed for protection.”

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It’s a change in U.S. policy that, until now, said the strait should remain open to all without tolls — as it was before the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran on Feb. 28. Any attempt by the U.S. or Iran to charge fees would violate global norms on freedom of navigation and raise tensions, likely causing further economic disruption far beyond the region.

The U.S. Navy has fought for freedom of navigation on the seas since the Barbary Wars and the War of 1812.

Attacks resume across the Mideast

The United Arab Emirates’ Defense Ministry said early Tuesday that Iran attacked two tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, killing one mariner and wounding eight others.

The Emirati Defense Ministry said Iran launched two cruise missiles at the tankers Mombasa and Al Bahiyah.

The attacks set both tankers ablaze, though the fires were extinguished.

Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard claimed the attack on the tankers, saying the vessels “ignored repeated warnings.”

“They chose to pass through a minefield and were subsequently targeted and disabled,” the Guard said.

Bahrain also came under renewed attack early Tuesday morning as Iran retaliated over the latest round of U.S. airstrikes. Bahrain sounded its missile alert sirens twice, urging the public to seek shelter. There was no word on any damage or casualties from the attack.

The Emirati Defense Ministry said the attack on the tankers killed one Indian national and wounded six Indians and two Ukrainians.

“The UAE reserves its full right to respond to this escalation and to take all necessary measures to protect its territory, its citizens and residents,” the Defense Ministry added.

The Emirates used similar language before launching attacks against Iran during the war. Fighter jets could be heard overheard Tuesday morning in Dubai.

The U.S. Embassy in Abu Dhabi and the U.S. Consulate in Dubai alerted Americans early Tuesday that consular appointments had been canceled through Wednesday “due to the regional security situation.”

Jordan’s military said it intercepted four missiles from Iran, according to a statement carried by the kingdom’s state-run Petra news agency. Jordan hosts U.S. forces and has come under attack by Tehran in recent days.

Trump says Iran failed a test

Earlier Monday, Trump told conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt that the agreement reached last month was “built to test” Iran, adding that “when you’re dealing with sleazebags (agreements) don’t mean much.”

“They didn’t honor the test,” the president said.

Iran asserts it has the right to manage traffic through the strait and potentially charge fees in accordance with the interim peace deal. The U.S. has disputed that.

The American military and the United Nations’ International Maritime Organization have tried to establish a route through the strait along the coast of Oman that would be outside of Iranian control. Iran has attacked ships using that route, saying the U.S. is violating the interim peace deal. The U.S. has attacked Iran in response, drawing Iranian attacks on U.S.-allied Arab states.

Exchanges of fire in recent days had already cast further doubt on the interim peace deal. Washington had lifted a blockade it imposed in mid-April as part of that deal, which also called for the strait to be fully reopened.

“We are reinstating the THE IRANIAN BLOCKADE,” Trump said on social media. “All other countries will have fair and open use of the Strait.”

The president said the U.S. would be “reimbursed” by 20% of the value of cargo to help cover “any and all costs necessary to do the job of providing safety and security.”

The U.S. military said it will resume its blockade of Iranian ports at midnight local Wednesday in Dubai.

___

Boak, Weissert and Toropin reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Mae Anderson in New York, Christopher Weber in Los Angeles, Kareem Chehayeb in Beirut, Munir Ahmed in Islamabad and Stella Martany in Irbil, Iraq, contributed to this report.

The Dictatorship

E. Jean Carroll finally gets Trump’s $5 million — plus interest

Published

11 hours ago

July 14, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

E. Jean Carroll finally gets Trump’s $5 million — plus interest

Christmas. 14, 2026, 11:06 AM EDT

Writer E. Jean Carroll finally has the $5 million — plus interest — that a jury ordered President Donald Trump to pay her in damages in one of her two cases against him, after Trump fought the payout for years.

Court records posted Tuesday show a transfer of $5,625,005.48 to Carroll’s legal team took place the day before.

Carroll received the money more than three years after a jury found that the president was liable for sexually abusing her in a Manhattan department store in 1996, and then for defaming her on social media. Trump has repeatedly appealed the judgment to no avail — including petitioning the Supreme Court multiple times — and last week launched a last-ditch attempt to block her from getting the money.

Last Tuesday, his legal team filed a briefrequesting that the disbursement of the damages be halted, pointing to his pending request for the Supreme Court to reconsider its refusal to hear his appeal.

A federal judge nevertheless ordered Wednesday that Carroll be paid, prompting a swift appeal from Trump and a motion for an emergency administrative stay on the disbursement of the funds.

That request was denied.

“Three years ago, a unanimous nine-person jury found President Trump liable for sexually assaulting and defaming E. Jean Carroll. Today, we are pleased to report that she has received the damages payment the jury awarded her as a result of that verdict,” said Carroll’s lead attorney, Roberta Kaplan.

Clarissa-Jan Lim is a breaking news reporter for MS NOW. She was previously a senior reporter and editor at BuzzFeed News.

Lisa Rubin is MS NOW’s senior legal reporter and a former litigator.

The Dictatorship

Trump downplays importance of failing Iran deal that he previously celebrated

Published

11 hours ago

July 14, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

Trump downplays importance of failing Iran deal that he previously celebrated

To the extent that the United States and Iran had a ceasefire deal in place to end the deadly, destabilizing war, that agreement has unraveled. Donald Trump has declared the ceasefire “over”; both countries have renewed their military strikes; and the American president is positioning the U.S. as a mercenary forcewith plans to charge tolls to pay for guarding the Strait of Hormuz.

As for the deal the Trump administration negotiated with Iran, formally known as a memorandum of understanding, or MOU, conservative host Hugh Hewitt asked the president whether the framework was “built to fall apart.” The Republican responded with an answer he hadn’t shared previously.

“It was built to test. It was a test,” Trump replied. “We didn’t know. It didn’t, look, memorandum of understanding, when you’re dealing with sleazebags, don’t mean much. And they don’t mean much when you’re dealing with honorable people, too, because it’s memorandum of understanding. It doesn’t mean much.”

The president went on to say that Iran “didn’t honor the test,” before suggesting that he had predicted from the outset that officials in Tehran would cause the agreement to collapse through noncompliance. “I said, ‘Watch, I guarantee. Watch.’ And they never, they never followed it.”

The apparent point of the on-air comments wasn’t merely to blame Iran for the unravelling deal, it was also to convey the suggestion that Trump knew all along Iran would cause the framework to collapse.

The trouble is, very recent history proves otherwise.

It was exactly one month ago when the president published a statement to his social media platform, announcing, “The Deal with the Islamic Republic of Iran is now complete. Congratulations to all!” About an hour later, seemingly eager to pat himself on the back, he added“This Great Deal will bring Peace and Security to the whole Region. Many presidents have tried to make Peace with Iran, and all have failed before me. The Leaders of the Region have, for the first time, found a President who can help them achieve real Peace.”

In the days that followed, not only did Trump continue to celebrate his alleged triumph, but the White House invested an enormous amount of time and effort in touting the deal, all while Vice President JD Vance went on a media tour, doing his best to defend the policy on the merits.

There was nothing about this being a “test.” Not a word was uttered about the idea that the deal “doesn’t mean much.”

If the president expects his post hoc rationalization of this failure to persuade anyone, he’s probably going to be disappointed.

Steve Benen is a producer for “The Rachel Maddow Show,” the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He’s also the bestselling author of “Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans’ War on the Recent Past.”