As President Trump prepares for the final two years of his presidency, he is expected to devote more attention to his presidential library, which has become a growing destination for money from companies and allies, according to current and former advisers who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
uncertain
who → prepare → anonymity
"He undoubtedly recognizes that the library development season opens now, and he will go for it," said a senior administration official.
asserted
official → recognize → it
A second administration official said that in this lame-duck period Mr. Trump will focus on "all things he can control, which means: Building."
With Democrats taking control of Congress in January
in the November elections, lawmakers have pledged investigations into the library's finances.
asserted
lawmakers → say → finances
"The donors bankrolling his personal vanity project will have to answer to a new majority in Congress," Sen. Elizabeth Warren, a Massachusetts Democrat, told CBS News.
asserted
Warren → bankroll → News
In March, Mr. Trump shared renderings of a 47-story tower on a donated plot in downtown Miami.
asserted
Trump → share → Miami
It showed golden escalators, a full-size Air Force One and a giant statue of him raising his fist, as he did after surviving an assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania, in July 2024.
asserted
he → show → July
But then he told reporters he does not "believe in building libraries or museums" and that the building is "most likely going to be a hotel," a departure from the traditional library his foundation described to the IRS last year.
asserted
foundation → tell → IRS
The Donald J. Trump Presidential Library Foundation, a nonprofit, registered in Florida and run by Mr. Trump's son Eric and son-in-law Michael Boulos, will fund the project.
asserted
Foundation → register → project
The foundation says it expects to raise $950 million by the end of 2027, including $600 million in 2027 alone, according to its October 2025 IRS application, obtained by CBS News.
uncertain
it → say → News
That far outpaces what Mr. Trump's predecessors had raised at this stage.
asserted
predecessors → outpace → stage
Tens of millions of dollars have already come from media and tech companies that settled lawsuits with him.
asserted
that → come → him
The nonprofit is also collecting donations through a payment processing company that has Donald Trump Jr. on its board, according to a fundraising portal page.
uncertain
that → collect → page
And Mr. Trump has said the luxury Boeing 747 that Qatar gave the U.S. last year — now in use as Air Force One — would go to the library, though Eric Trump and the White House have since said that plan is not final.
asserted
plan → say → library
Some of the most recent money has come from people trying to stay in Mr. Trump's good graces.
asserted
Some → come → graces
After the president threatened to cut ties with his top political advisers Chris LaCivita and James Blair over their consulting work for a pro-Russian party in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the two men donated their fees from that work to the library, The New York Post reported.
asserted
Post → threaten → library
A week later, The New York Times reported that Mr. Trump had told aides and allies that his former personal lawyer, Alina Habba Mildon, should donate part of a contract worth more than $50 million to his library or another Trump-related entity.
asserted
lawyer → report → library
Habba Mildon's contract was with a company tied to the family of a Venezuelan businessman Mr. Trump pardoned in January, the outlet reported.
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outlet → tie → January
Asked by CBS News whether she planned to donate some of her fees to the library, Habba Mildon responded to the text message with a "haha" reaction.
asserted
Mildon → ask → reaction
(She removed the reaction seconds later and declined to comment.)
asserted
She → remove → reaction
A former Trump adviser, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said the library is now where the fundraising action is, with the midterms over and donors already tapped for the America 250 celebrations and the White House ballroom.
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donors → speak → celebrations
MAGA Inc., a super PAC run by Mr. Trump's allies, started September with more than $400 million to spend on Republicans in the midterms.
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Inc. → run → midterms
Its filing due in December will show how much left it has in cash on hand.
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it → show → hand
"The library is one of the last few places he can squeeze people for money," the former adviser said.
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adviser → squeeze → money
"That's what a businessman does.
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businessman → do → what
He just creates opportunities."
asserted
He → create → opportunities
Fresh scrutiny of the library is expected after Democrats swept the House and the Senate on Tuesday.
asserted
Democrats → expect → Tuesday
Starting in January, Democrats will have the power to subpoena records and compel testimony.
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Democrats → start → testimony
Rep. Robert Garcia of California, the top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, issued a
on X to the administration after the election results: "Lawyer up.
asserted
Garcia → issue → results
""Giant corporations and foreign governments should not be able to buy influence in Washington with donations to the president's library," Warren told CBS News, adding that she will be investigating the library "and any wrongdoing will be held accountable."
asserted
wrongdoing → buy → library
The library has already
over Mr. Trump's stated plan to display the gifted jet.
asserted
library → over → jet
The plane's memorandum of understanding, signed in 2025 by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Qatar's Minister of State for Defense Affairs Soud bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, called it an "unconditional donation."
asserted
memorandum → sign → it
But when questions were raised about the U.S. accepting and using the Qatari plane as Air Force One, then-Attorney General Pam Bondi concluded that the gift could be conditioned on transferring the plane to the library foundation by Jan. 1, 2029, about three weeks before Mr. Trump leaves office.
uncertain
Trump → raise → office
In August, Eric Trump told NBC News that displaying the plane was "not the plan at the moment," saying a retired Air Force One would be shown instead.
asserted
One → tell → moment
A Qatari official, speaking to CBS News on the condition of anonymity, said what happens to the plane after Mr. Trump leaves office is not Qatar's concern.
asserted
Trump → speak → office
"This is something the Americans need to deal with," the official said.
asserted
official → need → ?
The White House referred questions about the library and whether any final decisions have been made about the plane or a hotel to the foundation, which did not respond to requests for comment.
asserted
which → refer → comment
"The Trump Presidential Library will be one of the most magnificent buildings in the world and a living testament to the indelible impact President Trump has made on America and its people," Davis Ingle, a spokesman for the White House, said in a statement.
asserted
Ingle → live → statement
Tens of millions from companies Mr. Trump sued
There have been two iterations of the library's nonprofit funding structure.
asserted
Trump → sue → structure
The first, the Donald J. Trump Presidential Library Fund, was incorporated in Florida in December 2024, days after
to pay $15 million toward the library to settle a defamation suit over anchor George Stephanopoulos' inaccurate on-air claim that Mr. Trump had been found civilly liable for raping writer E. Jean Carroll.
uncertain
Trump → incorporate → Carroll
A jury found him liable for sexual abuse.
asserted
him → find → abuse
…and 49 more, not listed.
The Aporia
