Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) believes President Donald Trump has transitioned from old-school, 'brick and mortar corruption' to a type of brazen profiteering that once seemed impossible now that he is in his second term.
Fresh off news that Trump's Department of Justice plans to create a $1.7 billion 'anti-weaponization fund' to sponsor so-called victims of political 'lawfare,' Raskin told The Daily Beast there is nothing more critical than cracking down on the administration's array of grifts during the site's Sunday podcast.
'We've never seen abuse like the kind of abuse that has taken place under Donald Trump,' he said, accusing the president of using legal loopholes and a 'shadow government' to help his 'personal wealth skyrocket during the second term.'
According to a March report from Forbes, Trump's net worth has swelled by a full $1.4 billion since his January 2025 inauguration, largely from his cryptocurrency holdings. Noting how unregulated digital assets now make it easier than ever for 'corrupt foreign governments' to channel funds to the president, Raskin accused Trump of being at the top of 'a completely lawless situation.'
He also urged action on what he described as the executive branch's 'pay-to-play pardon' schemes and called the recently created Board of Peace its own kind of hustle. Raskin acknowledged Congress's failure to impose guardrails during Trump's first term 'set the stage' for today, but promised that Democrats would do whatever it takes to stop the scamming as soon as they regain a majority in the November midterms.
Warning that Trump has made it clear he has no qualms about ignoring norms, rules, or even legal statutes, Raskin recalled how the president once said the only limit he considers when wielding power is his 'own morality.' 'So you can be a judge for yourself of how much of a real limit that is,' the congressman said.
