The record
The scandals
Court rulings, official actions, and documented reporting. Click through and read the sources yourself.
Convicted on 34 felony counts
A New York jury found him guilty of falsifying business records to cover up hush-money payments. In January 2025 the judge upheld the conviction but imposed an unconditional discharge (no jail, fine, or probation), making him the first convicted felon to become president.
Liable for sexual abuse and defamation
Juries found him liable for sexually abusing and defaming writer E. Jean Carroll. A federal appeals court upheld the $83.3 million defamation award in September 2025. He has asked the Supreme Court to overturn it.
Found to have committed fraud
In August 2025 a New York appeals court upheld the finding that he fraudulently inflated his wealth for years. It threw out the nearly $500 million penalty as excessive but kept the ban on him and his sons leading New York companies for a period of time.
Pardoned the Jan. 6 rioters
On his first day back he granted clemency to about 1,500 people charged in the Capitol attack, including people convicted of assaulting police officers.
Pardons for donors and allies
Reporting documents clemency for big donors and allies, and a growing pardon-lobbying industry. Disclosed pardon-lobbying fees in his first year back were reported at about eight times the last year of the Biden administration.
The Epstein files
He fought for months against releasing the files, then signed the Epstein Files Transparency Act under pressure. The released documents mention him more than 1,000 times, and reporters have found that some files were initially left out.
A luxury jet from Qatar
The administration accepted a luxury Boeing 747 from the government of Qatar as the new Air Force One. Under the agreement, taxpayers pay for the retrofit.
Going after his critics
Investigations and prosecutions aimed at people who investigated or opposed him, including a federal election-fraud task force that reporting says has turned its focus to those investigators.
All in the family
The family business is the presidency
While he sets policy, his sons and son-in-law are making deals with foreign governments and companies that do business with his administration. They say there's no conflict of interest. Here's what's been reported.
Kushner's Gulf-funded fund
Jared Kushner's Affinity Partners took $2 billion from Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund, plus money from Qatar and the UAE. A 2026 filing showed about 99% of its $6.1 billion comes from foreign investors. Meanwhile Kushner works as an unpaid Middle East envoy, a role that exempts him from the usual financial disclosure rules.
A $55 billion deal with the Saudis
Affinity joined Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund in a $55 billion buyout of video game maker Electronic Arts.
A UAE-linked stake in the family crypto firm
A deal signed by Eric Trump gave an Emirati-backed firm a 49% stake in World Liberty Financial, the family's crypto company. It was reported in early 2026.
His sons cash in on defense contracts
Funds linked to Don Jr. and Eric have invested in more than a dozen defense tech companies, which have collectively won at least $3.2 billion in government business since the sons bought in.
A $620M Pentagon loan request
The White House asked the Pentagon to lend $620 million to Vulcan Elements, a company in which Don Jr.'s venture firm holds a stake, according to a ProPublica investigation. The White House and Pentagon deny favoritism.
Trump-branded projects with foreign governments
A Trump golf resort in Qatar is being developed in part by a company owned by the Qatari government. A "Trump Plaza" in Saudi Arabia is being built by a developer close to the ruling family.
Selling drones to countries at war
A drone company backed by Trump's sons has pitched its interceptors to Gulf states under attack by Iran. A former Bush White House ethics lawyer said those countries are "under enormous pressure" to buy from the president's sons.
Roll the tape
In his own words
Moments you have to see to believe. Each link opens the video at a news site.
"Injection inside" with disinfectant
At an April 2020 COVID briefing, he wondered aloud whether injecting disinfectant could fight the virus. The maker of Lysol had to warn people not to drink its products.
"They're eating the dogs"
At the 2024 debate, he repeated a false rumor that Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, were eating pets. The city then received more than 30 bomb threats.
The Oval Office blowup
Seven minutes of the president and vice president berating Ukraine's wartime leader on live TV: "You don't have the cards right now."
Nodding off at his own Cabinet meeting
The man who mocked "Sleepy Joe" appeared to doze off repeatedly while his Cabinet took turns praising him.
"I've never seen him fall asleep"
Marco Rubio told Congress he'd never seen the president fall asleep in a meeting. Rep. Ted Lieu then played him the videos.