Folks, I almost spilled my coffee reading this one. President Donald Trump’s money managers made a whopping 1,152 trades on his behalf in July alone, according to his latest financial disclosure. That’s an astronomical number, even for an active trader. I mean, who needs that much action in their portfolio? It’s like they’re trying to make a game out of it or something. The transactions included companies like SpaceX and RTX, which do business with the federal government, because, you know, that’s not a conflict of interest or anything.
The scale of the trading is quite impressive, with Trump or his managers executing over 28,000 trades since his second inauguration in January 2025. That’s more than every member of the House and Senate combined, bless their hearts. Former presidents Joe Biden and Barack Obama, on the other hand, didn’t trade individual stocks, opting for mutual funds and US Treasuries instead. Maybe they just didn’t want the headache.
Now, I’m no financial expert, but even I can see that the amount of turnover “does seem high,” as Brett Bernstein, CEO and co-founder of XML Financial Group, put it. But, according to Bernstein, the volume alone doesn’t necessarily indicate corruption. It’s all about the approach to investing, folks. If Trump’s portfolio manager is timing the market with strategies, it doesn’t seem overly crazy. Maybe they’re just really good at their job?
The thing is, Trump is the first modern president to decline to place his assets in a blind trust, which means he has the ability to see which stocks his money managers are buying or selling. His signature appears on his financial disclosure form, indicating he’s aware of at least some of his holdings. You can’t make this stuff up, folks. Somewhere in Atlanta, a producer thought this sounded terrifying, and now we’re all talking about it.
A White House spokesperson, Davis Ingle, told CNN that Trump’s stock and bond portfolio is independently managed by third-party financial institutions. Ingle added that all holdings are maintained in discretionary accounts and invested through computer-based model portfolios, so there are no conflicts of interest. Sure, because that’s exactly how it works, right?
Last month, a CNN investigation found that Trump has promoted more than 20 companies on his Truth Social account days after buying stock in those firms. Because, why not? It’s not like he’s using his platform for personal gain or anything. Donald Sherman, president of the nonpartisan ethics watchdog CREW, told CNN that prior presidents did not engage in the stock market in this way. You have numerous examples of Republican and Democratic presidents who took steps to avoid conflicts of interest, and President Trump seems to be taking advantage of every opportunity to profit off of his government service.
In conclusion, folks, it’s been a wild ride reading about Trump’s trading habits. While it’s not necessarily corrupt, it’s definitely… interesting. As I finish my coffee, I’m left wondering what’s next for Trump’s portfolio. Will he keep on trading, or will he finally put his assets in a blind trust? Only time will tell, but one thing’s for sure – it’ll be entertaining to watch. And who knows, maybe he’ll even start a trading podcast or something, because why not? 🤑
Armchair patriot. Believes in the free market, cold beer, and that there’s always a guy named George behind every CNN segment.
Former remote-throwing champion turned #1 couch commentator on liberal panic in the media. Born in Texas (or so his mug says), he earned a degree in Fake Newsology & Beer Philosophy from YouTube University.
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