• Kash Patel, Trump's nominee to be FBI Director, is worth more than $5.9 million.
• He made more than $2.6 million last year from consulting, paid speeches, and books.
• His clients included Truth Social, one of Trump's PACs, and the Embassy of Qatar.

Kash Patel, President Donald Trump's nominee to be the director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, made more than $2.6 million last year.

According to a financial disclosure obtained by Business Insider ahead of its public release, Patel's income came from a mixture of consulting work, paid speeches, media appearances, and the proceeds of several books.

His total net worth is more than $5.9 million, according to a document filed with the Senate Judiciary Committee. All of Trump's nominees are required to file public final disclosure reports as they are considered by the Senate.

The bulk of Patel's income, more than $2.1 million, came from consulting work. Among his clients was Trump Media and Technology Corp, the company that runs Truth Social. According to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Patel's annual compensation was $120,000, though his contract ended in March 2024.

Pam Bondi, Trump's nominee for attorney general, has also been financially tied up with Truth Social, holding more than $3.9 million in stock in the company as of December.

Patel also listed Save America, Trump's leadership PAC, as a client, along with the Embassy of Qatar and several other organizations.

He earned $306,000 last year from a series of paid speeches and media appearances, including $99,000 for working as a contributor for the Epoch Times and $20,000 for a May 2024 interview on "Our Watch With Tim Thompson."

Writing books also proved to be lucrative for Patel. He earned between $100,000 and $1 million in royalties for his 2023 book, "Government Gangsters," and between $45,000 and $150,000 for his "The Plot Against the King" children's book series.

He also owns Elite Depot, a "fashion management company" based in the Cayman Islands worth between $1 million and $5 million. A spokesperson for Patel did not immediately return a request for comment regarding the organization's purpose.

Patel's assets also include up to $100,000 in Bitcoin, up to $250,000 in NVIDIA stock, and up to $100,00 in Palantir stock. In 2024, he earned $8,000 in director's fees from VK Integrated Systems, a weapons company.

Patel is among Trump's most controversial nominees, owing to questions about his conduct during Trump's first term, his promotion of conspiracy theories, and his extreme rhetoric.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer identified Patel this week as a nominee that Democrats felt they may have a shot at defeating. His first confirmation hearing took place on Thursday.

Read Patel's full financial disclosure below:

• Trump suggested on Thursday that diversity initiatives at the FAA led to a plane crash near DC.
• The president said he was offering a series of "very strong opinions and ideas" on what happened.
• He also criticized former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.

President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance on Thursday offered heated criticism of diversity initiatives at the Federal Aviation Administration following a deadly plane crash near Washington, DC.

After calling for a moment of silence, Trump spent the bulk of his remarks in the White House briefing room laying out a series of diversity initiatives within the FAA that he suggested could have contributed to the crash, which happened Wednesday evening.

At the same time, Trump repeatedly acknowledged that he did not have direct evidence of a causal link between those initiatives and the crash.

"We do not know what led to this crash, but we have some very strong opinions and ideas," Trump told reporters.

During his remarks, Trump also criticized former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, suggesting that the department's policies under him contributed to the crash.

"You know how badly everything's run since he's run the Department of Transportation?" Trump said of Buttigieg.

Buttigieg later hit back via X: "As families grieve, Trump should be leading, not lying."

Pressed by a reporter on why he thought diversity initiatives might be behind the crash, Trump said: "Because I have common sense."

Derrick Johnson, the president of the NAACP, said in a statement that his organization was "disgusted by this display of unpresidential, divisive behavior."

"We're proud to see thousands of first responders in the DMV region unify to support the enormous recovery efforts taking place on the Potomac," Johnson said. "The President has made his decision to put politics over people abundantly clear as he uses the highest office in the land to sow hatred rooted in falsehoods instead of providing us with the leadership we need and deserve."

Sen. Tammy Duckworth of Illinois, the top Democrat on the Senate commerce committee's Subcommittee on Aviation Safety, Operations, and Innovation, pushed back strongly on Trump's comments in a call with reporters.

"I have seen zero evidence at this point that's to suggest that this collision had anything to do with DEI," Duckworth said. "Speculation at this time is highly irresponsible, and we need to get to the facts."

Vance also criticized diversity initiatives, saying: "If you go back to just some of the headlines over the past 10 years, you have many hundreds of people suing the government because they would like to be air traffic controllers, but they were turned away because of the color of their skin. That policy ends under Donald Trump's leadership."

Since Trump reassumed the presidency last week, he's taken a series of actions aimed at ending diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts across the federal government, including one dealing specifically with the FAA. As a result, DEI-related offices in various agencies have shuttered.

Trump has directed agencies to compile lists of private companies to investigate over their DEI efforts, which could lead to a cascade effect in the private sector.

Many companies, including Meta, McDonald's, and Walmart, have decided in recent months to roll back or end their DEI programs.

"The legal and policy landscape surrounding diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in the United States is changing," Meta wrote in a memo to employees. "The Supreme Court of the United States has recently made decisions signaling a shift in how courts will approach DEI."

Target also recently said it was ending multiple DEI programs to stay "in step with the evolving external landscape."

Others, like Costco, have publicly supported DEI amid pressures from conservative activists. JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon recently defended the bank's diversity initiatives in response to activist investors.

• The White House's pause on federal grants and loans appears to be over.
• A memo sent by Matthew J. Vaeth at the OMB on Wednesday says that the memorandum is no longer in effect.
• A federal judge later said that he would issue an order to block the freeze.

The White House's controversial federal grants and loans freeze appears to be over.

A memo sent by Matthew J. Vaeth at the Office of Management and Budget on Wednesday, January 29, and addressed to the heads of executive departments and agencies, says that the memorandum is no longer in effect.

"OMB Memorandum M-25-13 is rescinded. If you have questions about implementing the President's Executive Orders, please contact your agency General Counsel," the memo, seen by Business Insider, reads. M-25-13 was the memo that the OMB, which oversees federal agencies and the federal budget, sent out Monday, pausing nearly all federal grants and loans.

On Wednesday afternoon, a federal judge said he intended to block the order after White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the freeze was still in effect.

"I'm inclined to grant the restraining order," U.S. District Judge Jack McConnell, a Rhode Island-based appointee of President Barack Obama, said during a court hearing, according to Politico. "I fear that the administration is acting with a distinction without a difference."

Earlier, Leavitt confirmed that the OMB order had been withdrawn. She said Trump's earlier executive orders, which imposed a freeze on new regulations and terminated diversity, equity, and inclusion programs, remain in effect.

"This is NOT a rescission of the federal funding freeze," Leavitt wrote on X. "It is simply a rescission of the OMB memo. Why? To end any confusion created by the court's injunction. The President's EO's on federal funding remain in full force and effect, and will be rigorously implemented."

Some Democratic lawmakers quickly took a victory lap, celebrating the OMB order's demise.

"This is Trump's first major loss. When we fight, we win," Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York wrote on X.

Other Democrats cautioned that just because the OMB order was rescinded does not mean the broader fight is over.

"I think all they know is they got a backlash they didn't expect, and so we're not assuming the rescission is to be taken as a resolution," Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia told reporters at the Capitol. "So we're going to be on the floor tonight raising hell about this. I'm going to meet with my statewide Head Start programs right now. We're expecting that this battle is just beginning."

Sen. Chris Murphy, a Connecticut Democrat, said the White House may have exacerbated the situation.

"What that order may have been designed to do is circumvent the court order," Murphy told reporters. "So everybody read that memo and thought crisis averted. The crisis might have just deepened."

Murphy said the scope of Wednesday's White House order is unclear since OMB may have just rescinded the controversial order but not the underlying funding freeze.

Congressional lawmakers, including some Republicans, expressed confusion over the extent of the initial memo. Popular charities, including Meals on Wheels, were unclear if the federal grants they received would continue to keep money following. Lawyers advised NGOs to ensure they had enough cash to wait out the pause.

The Trump administration, the Office of Management and Budget, and the Office of Personnel Management did not respond to a request for comment from BI.

Trump repeatedly said on the campaign trail that he would test the extent of presidential power to cut federal spending unilaterally. He and his allies view a Nixon-era law as unconstitutional, and the initial OMB memo appeared to defy the law that leaves the executive branch only narrow grounds to refuse to spend funds approved by Congress.

• Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s confirmation hearings to be HHS Secretary begin on Wednesday.
• His ex-running mate says she'll fund primary challengers against senators who vote against him.
• Nicole Shanahan, a billionaire Silicon Valley lawyer, previously helped bankroll RFK Jr.'s campaign.

Nicole Shanahan is threatening to "personally fund" primary challenges against senators who vote against Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s nomination to be the secretary of health and human services.

"This is a bipartisan message, and it comes directly from me," Shanahan said in a video on X on Monday. "While Bobby may be willing to play nice, I won't."

Shanahan, a Silicon Valley lawyer worth more than a billion dollars, previously served as Kennedy's running mate — and helped fund his campaign to the tune of nearly $19 million.

Kennedy ended his independent presidential bid in August to endorse Donald Trump. In November, Trump nominated Kennedy to lead the Department of Health and Human Services. His first confirmation hearing is set to take place on Wednesday morning.

"If you vote against him, I will personally fund challengers to primary you in your next election, and I will enlist hundreds of thousands to join me," Shanahan said.

Shanahan listed 13 senators in both parties whose votes she was watching, including:

• Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock of Georgia
• Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff of Georgia
• Republican Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky
• Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina
• Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska
• Republican Sen. Susan Collins of Maine
• Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana
• Republican Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina
• Republican Sen. James Lankford of Oklahoma
• Democratic Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey
• Democratic Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania
• Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont
• Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada

Some of the Republicans that Shanahan named are seen as less firmly supportive of Kennedy, while many of the Democrats she named have been the subject of speculation that they could be won over.

Sanders, for instance, previously offered measured praised for Kennedy's ideas about processed foods and "Making America Healthy Again" in an interview with BI.

"When Kennedy talks about an unhealthy society, he's right," Sanders said at the time. "The amount of chronic illness that we have is just extraordinary."

• Trump is freezing federal grant funding, raising major constitutional and legal questions.
• Democrats are calling Trump's actions an attack on the institution of Congress itself.
• Republicans, meanwhile, are treading more lightly.

With President Donald Trump's administration temporarily freezing some federal grant funding, lawmakers on Tuesday warned that the move threatened to render Congress irrelevant as an institution.

"If this stands, then Congress may as well adjourn," said Sen. Angus King, an independent from Maine who caucuses with Democrats.

"This is an attempt to seize power," said Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut. "This is not a good faith, temporary pause to try to figure out whether money is being spent in accordance with the law."

On Monday, the acting director of the White House Office of Management and Budget issued a memo directing agencies to pause the disbursement of federal loans and grants to assess whether they are in compliance with Trump's recent executive orders, including on foreign aid and DEI. The memo states that Social Security and Medicare will not be affected.

The scope of the order still remains unclear, with some senators on Tuesday saying that their Medicaid portals had become inaccessible. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt later wrote on X that "we expect the portal will be back online shortly."

Regardless, Trump's move cuts to the very heart of the separation of powers. The now-frozen federal grant funding was previously approved via sweeping spending bills passed by Congress. Those bills, particularly under the last two years of divided government, have been the result of complex and lengthy negotiations between members of both parties.

"Can you imagine what it's going to be like for any of us, either under this administration or future administrations of any kind, if those agreements mean nothing?" said Sen. Patty Murray of Washington, the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee. "We cannot function as a democracy in this country if we cannot respect and abide by our ability to make agreements in Congress."

The Impoundment Control Act (ICA) of 1974, along with subsequent Supreme Court rulings, generally requires that the executive branch must spend money appropriated by Congress. Trump and his advisors have long argued that the law is unconstitutional, and he has pledged to challenge it in court. Separately, several Republicans recently introduced a bill to repeal the ICA, arguing that Congress can no longer be relied upon to cut federal spending on its own.

Republican Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, both of whom chair committees that oversee federal spending and the budget, greeted the news with mild concern on Tuesday.

"I think there is benefit in taking a look at federal spending to see where we can be more efficient, to identify duplicative programs," Collins, the chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, told reporters. "But this is far too sweeping, and will have an adverse effect on the delivery of services and programs."

"I'd like to know what the game plan is here," Graham, the chair of the Senate Budget Committee, told reporters. "I want to try to find out what's happening here, and give people back home some idea of what to expect."

Republican Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri, meanwhile, offered a defense of the move. "I think the president has every right to review the terms on which federal funding grants are dispersed, how they're being dispersed, where they're going, which is what I think they're doing here," Hawley said. "If you can't do that, then why do we have an independent executive?"

Democratic senators are incensed, but it's not yet clear what they'll do about it in the long run. It may ultimately take the courts, even the Supreme Court, to resolve the matter. Several lawsuits are already being launched in response to Trump's freeze.

"We need to act with some urgency," Murphy said. "We can't continue business as usual here when there is a literal constitutional crisis unfolding beneath our feet."

For now, the Democratic resistance on Capitol Hill appears to be taking the form of protest votes. Twenty-two Democratic senators voted against confirming Trump's nominee to be secretary of transportation, former Rep. Sean Duffy, after none of them voted against him in a procedural vote on Monday.

"I was ready to confirm Sean Duffy to lead the Department of Transportation, but I cannot vote for him after the chaos President Trump has unleashed with his order to pause critical federal funding to Nevada," Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez-Masto of Nevada said in a statement.

House Democrats, meanwhile, plan to strategize further on Wednesday. In a letter to members, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said the party would discuss a three-pronged strategy regarding government funding, litigation, and communications.

• The White House is temporarily freezing some federal grants and financial assistance programs.
• A memo calls for agencies to ensure that their grants align with the administration's priorities.
• The pause is set to go into effect at 5pm ET on Tuesday.

The White House is pausing the payment of billions of dollars of federal grants on Tuesday, according to an internal memo sent to executive branch agencies on Monday and obtained by Business Insider.

The two-page memo authored by Matthew J. Vaeth, the acting director of the Office of Management and Budget, said there would be a "temporary pause" in the "disbursement of all Federal financial assistance," effective from Tuesday at 5 p.m.

"This temporary pause will provide the Administration time to review agency programs and determine the best uses of the funding for those programs consistent with the law and the President's priorities," the memo said.

The pause aims to clamp down on government spending linked to "financial assistance for foreign aid, nongovernmental organizations, DEI, woke gender ideology, and the green new deal," the memo said.

It said that these were a "waste of taxpayer dollars."

Vaeth's memo called for all federal agencies to do a comprehensive analysis of their grants and programs to ensure that they align with the new administration's priorities.

The freeze could be a blow to states that depend on the federal government's coffers, such as Alaska, which in 2023 received more than $6,500 per capita in federal grants, a report by the Federal Funds Information for States found.

A large percentage of the grants — more than half in the case of Alaska — was going toward Medicaid, FFIS wrote in the October report.

In his first week in office, President Donald Trump has undone policies related to diversity, equity, and inclusion. Shortly after his inauguration, he signed an executive order ending DEI programs in the federal government.

Trump has also created the Elon Musk-run Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, to cut government spending and roll back regulations.

Read the full memo below:

• The House is going to have it's own DOGE subcommittee chaired by Marjorie Taylor Greene.
• The Democrats on this committee aren't DOGE-curious. They're gearing up for a fight.
• The top Democrat says Republicans want to turn the government into a "piggy bank" for Elon Musk.

As the Department of Government Efficiency has taken shape, you may have heard about a handful of Democratic politicians who are interested in working with Elon Musk.

You won't find any of these "DOGE-curious" Democrats, however, on the House's new "Delivering on Government Efficiency" subcommittee.

"We believe that they're going to use the DOGE subcommittee to eviscerate the federal workforce," Rep. Melanie Stansbury of New Mexico, the top Democrat on the panel, said on CNN on Friday.

The subcommittee, housed beneath the House Oversight Committee, will be chaired by Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene — the controversial Georgia congresswoman who was barred from serving on committees altogether during her first two years in office.

Other Republicans on the panel include some of the party's biggest spending hawks and members of the hardline House Freedom Caucus, including:

• Rep. Pat Fallon of Texas
• Rep. William Timmons of South Carolina
• Rep. Brandon Gill of Texas
• Rep. Brian Jack of Georgia
• Rep. Tim Burchett of Tennessee
• Rep. Eric Burlison of Missouri
• Rep. Michael Cloud of Texas

The Democrats, meanwhile, include several lawmakers who've cut their teeth doing battle with Republicans on the Oversight committee over the last two years, including:

• Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton of Washington, DC
• Rep. Stephen Lynch of Massachusetts
• Rep. Robert Garcia of California
• Rep. Greg Casar of Texas
• Rep. Jasmine Crockett of Texas

These Democrats have generally been critical of DOGE. Stansbury said on CNN that Republicans want to make the federal government "essentially a personal piggy bank for Elon Musk," pointing to the billionaire businessman's reliance on federal contracts. Casar, meanwhile, previously told BI that he expects Musk and DOGE to pursue "really awful, stupid, self-serving stuff."

"We're ready to fight back on day one, call out attempts to slash our social safety, and make sure we take care of working families and the middle class," Garcia said in a statement announcing his placement on the subcommittee.

While the subcommittee is focusing on the same government-efficiency goals as Musk's DOGE in the executive branch, it remains unclear how the two entities will interact.

Meanwhile, lawmakers are pursuing DOGE-aligned initiatives through other avenues, including via DOGE caucuses in both the House and the Senate.

• When Tulsi Gabbard left her job as a Democratic congresswoman in 2021, she wasn't that rich.
• Now a MAGA celebrity, Gabbard has raked in more than $1.2 million in the last year.
• That includes a $297,000 book advance, $170,130 in speaking fees, and $199,500 from Fox News.

When Tulsi Gabbard departed Congress four years ago, she was not particularly wealthy.

Still a member of the Democratic Party and just over a year after the end of her bid for that party's presidential nomination, Gabbard filed a financial disclosure in May 2021 that listed a modest checking account, a handful of investments, and a home mortgage of at least $500,000. Her annual salary over the course of her eight-year tenure, as with all other rank-and-file House members, was $174,000.

Four years and a political transformation later, Gabbard's personal finances look quite different.

At the beginning of January, Gabbard — now President Donald Trump's nominee to be Director of National Intelligence — filed a disclosure revealing that she made more than $1.2 million last year.

That income came primarily from her position as a MAGA media celebrity, including: a combined $170,130 from 13 paid speeches, most of which were delivered to conservative audiences; $199,500 for being a Fox News media contributor; and $119,500 for being a media contributor to the American Center for Law and Justice, a conservative advocacy group.

She also earned a $297,500 advance for her 2024 book, "For Love of Country: Leave the Democrat Party Behind."

Her financial disclosure indicated that she owns up to $500,00 in shares of Rumble, the conservative video platform, along with up to $250,000 in Tesla and up to $50,000 in Bitcoin.

Spokespeople for Trump did not respond to a request for comment for this article. A Trump-Vance transition spokesperson previously told BI that "all nominees and appointees will comply with the ethical obligations of their respective agencies."

It's not uncommon for members of Congress to get rich after they leave office. In fact, it's quite common, with lawmakers in both parties typically cashing in on their service via lobbying and consulting gigs.

Gabbard's case is relatively unique, illustrating the financial rewards that have come with the ex-congresswoman's pivot from progressive to MAGA.

That pivot began in the year after she left Congress, culminating in her departure from the Democratic Party in 2022 as she campaigned with several GOP candidates in that year's midterm elections.

She now faces a difficult confirmation fight to be the nation's top intelligence official under Trump, with senators questioning her 2017 trip to Syria to meet Bashar Al-Assad and positions on the Ukraine war.

• Vivek Ramaswamy will no longer be a co-leader of DOGE.
• He's expected to instead run for governor of Ohio in 2026.
• That leaves Elon Musk as the group's sole leader.

Vivek Ramaswamy is leaving President Donald Trump's Department of Government Efficiency.

Instead of leading the group with Elon Musk, he's expected to run for governor of Ohio, according to various media reports.

"It was my honor to help support the creation of DOGE," Ramaswamy wrote on X on Monday evening. "I'm confident that Elon & team will succeed in streamlining government."

"Vivek Ramaswamy played a critical role in helping us create DOGE. He intends to run for elected office soon, which requires him to remain outside of DOGE based on the structure that we announced today," Trump spokesperson Anna Kelly said, according to the New York Times and Associated Press. "We thank him immensely for his contributions over the last 2 months and expect him to play a vital role in making America great again!"

A source familiar with the matter previously told BI that Trump was encouraging Ramaswamy to seek Vice President JD Vance's vacated Senate seat. However, on Friday, Gov. Mike DeWine appointed Lt. Governor Jon Husted to the position.

On Monday, Ramaswamy wrote on X that he would "have more to say very soon about my future plans in Ohio."

Prior to the intrigue about Ramaswamy's potential appointment to the US Senate, the tech entrepreneur and one-time 2024 presidential candidate was expected to co-lead DOGE with Musk.

Musk will now be the sole leader of the government-efficiency initiative, which Trump said he would officially establish via executive order on Monday.

In recent days, Ramaswamy has been publicly toying with the idea of a gubernatorial bid in the Buckeye State. On Friday, he publicly thanked Sen. Marsha Blackburn of Tennesse, a big booster of DOGE in the Senate, on X after she said she would support him if he chooses to run for governor.

• Donald Trump was sworn in as the 47th president of the United States on Monday.
• Big names in business and tech attended the inauguration and other weekend celebrations.
• Here are the billionaires and CEOs who attended Trump's inaugural ceremony.

Donald Trump was sworn in as president of the United States for the second time on Monday, and key business and tech leaders were there to watch it happen — and to try to get in his good graces.

It's a shift from recent years, when Big Tech leaders and Trump appeared more at odds.

Several of them even sat on the inaugural platform, getting better seats than some of Trump's cabinet appointees.

Tesla's Elon Musk, Meta's Mark Zuckerberg, Google's Sundar Pichai, and Amazon's Jeff Bezos were among those seated on the inaugural platform. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, in contrast, reportedly watched from an overflow room.

Here are the billionaires and CEOs who attended Trump's inauguration.

Elon Musk, Tesla, SpaceX, and X

Elon Musk, the Tesla and SpaceX CEO who spent hundreds of millions helping to elect Trump, attended the inauguration and spoke at an inaugural rally Monday.

Musk has been a frequent visitor to Trump's Florida estate, Mar-a-Lago, since Trump was reelected.

Trump tapped Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy to lead a new Department of Government Efficiency, though Ramaswamy confirmed Monday he's leaving DOGE.

Mark Zuckerberg, Meta

Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla Chan, attended the inauguration ceremony and sat on the platform.

Later on Monday, Zuckerberg posted a photo of himself and Chan dressed for an inauguration event with the caption "Optimistic and celebrating," alongside an American flag emoji.

Meta was one of the first major companies to donate $1 million to Trump's inauguration fund, and has started 2025 with a slew of changes that appear to be influenced by Trump's politics.

Zuckerberg dined with Trump at Mar-a-Lago in November, and was "very keen to play an active role" in the president's tech policymaking, Meta's then-global affairs chief, Nick Clegg, said at the time.

Trump was a vocal critic of Facebook in his first term and last year threatened to jail Zuckerberg if re-elected.

While Zuckerberg didn't endorse a candidate for president in 2024, he said Trump's reaction to being shot at a rally in Pennsylvania last summer was "badass."

Jeff Bezos, Amazon

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and his fiancée, Lauren Sánchez, reportedly met with Trump at Mar-a-Lago in December. Amazon also donated $1 million to Trump's inaugural fund.

Bezos said at The New York Times' DealBook Summit last month that he was "actually very optimistic" about another Trump term, and would like to help Trump with "reducing regulation"

"What I've seen so far is he is calmer than he was the first time and more settled," Bezos said. "You've probably grown in the last eight years. He has, too."

Bezos didn't always feel this way about Trump.

In 2016, he said Trump's desire to lock up Hillary Clinton and his stated refusal to accept a loss in the presidential election that year "erodes our democracy around the edges."

Trump has also criticized Amazon and The Washington Post, which Bezos owns, frequently over the years.

In 2024, for the first time in decades, The Post didn't endorse a presidential candidate. Bezos reportedly intervened to block an endorsement of Kamala Harris.

Bezos later defended the decision, writing in an op-ed that endorsements "create a perception of bias" and "do nothing to tip the scales of an election."

Tim Cook, Apple

Unlike some of his peers, Apple CEO Tim Cook — better known to Trump as "Tim Apple" — made a $1 million donation to Trump's inaugural fund from his own wallet, rather than from his company.

Cook has credited the first Trump administration with helping Apple break into the retail market in India.

Sam Altman, OpenAI

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman also made a personal donation of $1 million to Trump's inaugural fund.

Altman has stated that he agrees with some of Trump's views around bureaucratic blockades.

"The thing I really deeply agree with the president on is, it is wild how difficult it has become to build things in the United States," Altman told Bloomberg earlier this month.

He added: "Power plants, data centers, any of that kind of stuff. I understand how bureaucratic cruft builds up, but it's not helpful to the country in general."

Shou Zi Chew, TikTok

Shou Zi Chew, TikTok's CEO, was also spotted in the Capitol Rotunda.

Last week, the Supreme Court ruled against TikTok on its challenge against a divest-or-ban law. The platform briefly went dark for US users on Saturday night but resumed its services on Sunday after Trump said he would pause the ban with an executive order.

On Friday, Chew thanked Trump for "his commitment to work with us to find a solution that keeps TikTok available in the United States."

Sundar Pichai, Google

Google CEO Sundar Pichai was also in attendance Monday.

Google was among the companies that donated $1 million to Trump's inaugural fund.

Rupert Murdoch, NewsCorp

Rupert Murdoch, the patriarch of the Fox News empire, was also in attendance.

Bernard Arnault, LVMH

French billionaire Bernard Arnault, the CEO of luxury conglomerate LVMH, which includes brands like Louis Vuitton and Dior, attended the inauguration.

He was joined by daughter Delphine Arnault, who is CEO of Dior, and son Alexandre Arnault, who will become deputy CEO of LVMH's wines and spirits division, Moët Hennessy, starting in February.

Dana White, UFC

Silicon Valley's growing alignment with the cultural MAGA-verse was also on display Monday.

In attendance at the inauguration was Dana White, president and CEO of UFC, who was recently appointed to the board of Meta, and is a close Trump ally.

White and Meta's Zuckerberg, whose hobbies include MMA fighting, have been spotted together multiple times over the years.

Podcaster Theo Von, one of the internet celebrities Trump used to court young male voters, was at the inauguration, too, representing an ascendant realm of right-wing media.

Joe Rogan, who interviewed Trump on his podcast in late October, also attended.

Miriam Adelson, Las Vegas Sands

Miriam Adelson, the widow of casino magnate Sheldon Adelson, was also in attendance.

According to the Associated Press, the longtime GOP megadonor co-hosted a reception for Trump on Monday night alongside Zuckerberg, Tilman Fertitta, Trump's pick for US ambassador to Italy, Todd Ricketts, co-owner of the Chicago Cubs, and Ricketts' wife, Sylvie Légère.

Phil Ruffin, Circus Circus Hotel and Casino

Las Vegas casino magnate Phil Ruffin attended the inauguration with his wife, Oleksandra Nikolayenko.

Trump had served as Ruffin's best man when he married Nikolayenko in 2008.

Mukesh Ambani, Reliance Industries

Mukesh Ambani, the chairman of Indian conglomerate Reliance Industries, attended Trump's inauguration along with his wife Nita, a spokesperson for Ambani confirmed to Business Insider.

The couple also attended Trump's pre-inauguration reception in Washington on Saturday.

Linda McMahon, former CEO of World Wrestling Entertainment

Linda McMahon, Trump's nominee for education secretary and the former CEO of World Wrestling Entertainment, was also present at Trump's inauguration.

While not a billionaire in her own right, McMahon gave $15 million to Trump's campaign and is married to Vincent McMahon, the former executive chairman of WWE-owned TKO Group Holdings, valued at $3 billion.

She led the Small Business Administration from 2017 to 2019, during Trump's first term in office.

Scott Bessent, Wall Street veteran

Also in attendance was Scott Bessent, Trump's pick for Treasury Secretary.

Bessent founded and runs the macro hedge fund Key Square Group and served as Trump's top economic advisor during the campaign.

If he gets Senate confirmation, Bessent would be the highest-ranking LGBTQ+ official in American history, according to the Associated Press.

Doug Burgum, Arthur Ventures

Former North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum was another attendee at Trump's inauguration.

Burgum, Trump's pick to lead the Department of Interior and "energy czar," co-founded Arthur Ventures, a venture capital firm that invests in early-stage B2B software businesses and manages $1.1 billion.

Chris Wright, Liberty Energy

Chris Wright, founder and CEO of Liberty Energy, an oilfield services firm with a $3.7 billion net value, was also present.

Trump has tapped Wright to lead the Department of Energy, but he will continue in his positions until the Senate confirms him, the company said.

Howard Lutnick, Cantor Fitzgerald

Howard Lutnick, the CEO of Wall Street investment bank Cantor Fitzgerald, was another attendee at Trump's inauguration.

Lutnick, who has been put forward as the next commerce secretary, has been president and CEO of the financial services firm since 1991.

In recent years, the billionaire banker has become a key advisor to Trump as well as a major fundraiser.

He is cochair of the Trump transition team.

Others congratulated Trump online

Responses from the corporate world also poured in online.

Pichai, Cook, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, and former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg were among those congratulating Trump on X, formerly known as Twitter, on Monday.

Correction: January 20, 2025 — An earlier version of this story misstated Jeff Bezos' current position at Amazon. He is the founder and executive chairman, not the CEO.

• DOGE is asserting itself in DC, with Elon Musk reportedly set to work minutes from the White House.
• Tech leaders and normal Americans are involved, and staffers will be embedded in federal agencies.
• Lawmakers told BI they hope to suggest "low-hanging fruit" to DOGE to cut in the first quarter.

There's another inauguration happening on Monday in DC.

Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy aren't getting formally sworn in, but it's nonetheless the launch of their Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), the new commission that aims to slash federal spending and cut regulations.

Though many questions remain about how exactly DOGE will function, it is poised to start interfacing with federal agencies and lawmakers to suggest budgetary and regulatory reforms.

Their recommendations are likely to roll in fast. As Rep. Aaron Bean of Florida, the co-chair of the House's DOGE caucus, told Business Insider, "The iron is not just hot, but it's molten."

Musk and Ramaswamy, the co-leaders of DOGE, have recently scaled back their goal of cutting $2 trillion from federal spending by the time the commission disbands, no later than July 4, 2026. Still, the two have floated a slate of reforms, from deleting agencies to firing federal employees.

DOGE won't be a formal, Congressionally authorized department. Rather, it will operate as an advisory group outside the government. It won't be able to make spending cuts — that's Congress' job — but Musk and Ramaswamy have said they plan to suggest changes to Trump, whom they said can use executive actions to start implementing some reforms. Law experts have told BI that the legal logic remains dubious.

"DOGE will supercharge the US economy by cutting wasteful spending and eliminating anti-growth regulations," James Fishback, CEO of investment firm Azoria and an associate of Ramaswamy's who is providing outside advice to the counsel, told BI.

Representatives for Musk, Ramaswamy, and Trump did not respond to BI's request for comment.

Here's how they plan to do it, starting on day one.

Staffers, including Musk, will reportedly work close to the White House

DOGE staffers will be embedded in the political center of DC, with Musk reportedly to inhabit an office in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, per the New York Times.

The building is next to the West Wing and houses various agencies, including the Office of Management and Budget. In an opinion piece outlining their plans for DOGE, Musk and Ramaswamy said they plan to work closely with the OMB as it drafts President Trump's budget.

A source familiar with DOGE's planning told BI that Musk and Ramaswamy will each run separate teams that will work in tandem. Musk will focus on broad spending and Ramaswamy on deregulation, according to the source. Politico reported similar news, with a source telling the outlet that other staffers will implement the two leaders' suggestions.

However, Ramaswamy's future at DOGE is uncertain as the commission officially gets off the ground, with multiple outlets reporting that he intends to run for governor of Ohio in 2026. Should Ramaswamy run, he would need to begin campaigning long before DOGE's self-imposed end date in July of that year.

DOGE will deploy staff to most federal agencies

The source confirmed to BI that the commission will deploy two staffers to most federal agencies where they have relevant experience, news that the Times reported earlier. Those who aren't embedded in agencies plan to work out of the US Digital Service, the outlet said — again, minutes from the White House.

Vice President Al Gore led a government reform initiative from 1993 to 2001, and John Koskinen served as the deputy director for management at OMB during some of the efforts. He fielded many of the group's recommendations and said the best way to find waste at agencies is to talk with employees.

"The people who live with the system and live with it every day are going to be the best people to make suggestions as well as identify the problems," he told BI.

Koskinen said that DOGE's reported efforts to embed at agencies could be an effective method of determining where to cut.

Still, turning recommendations into action will be difficult, especially before all federal agency positions are filled, Elaine Kamarck, a senior fellow at the nonpartisan Brookings Institute who helped lead Gore's efforts, said.

She told BI that her team made around 400 recommendations in its first eight months, but it took years for any of them to be implemented.

Silicon Valley leaders and others are already getting to work

Trump has already announced two official hires at DOGE: Republican lawyer William McGinley as counsel and former administration official Katie Miller in an unspecified role.

Beyond the formal announcements, Musk and Ramaswamy have reportedly tapped a wide range of Silicon Valley and tech leaders to help guide the commission, with the Times reporting that venture capitalist Marc Andreessen and Boring Company president Steve Davis are among those involved. They join a slate of other big names in tech coming to power in Washington on Monday.

It's not just titans of the private sector that will fill the DOGE offices.

DOGE said it was beginning to hire this month for full-time salaried engineering, HR, IT, and finance roles. Musk had previously said that DOGE employees would not be compensated and must be able to work more than 80 hours per week. It remains unclear which workers will be compensated.

DOGE workers will likely be required in the office

DOGE had hired 50 people by early January who were working out of SpaceX's DC office, per the Washington Post. SpaceX was founded by Musk.

Musk and Ramaswamy have both been critical of federal agencies that don't use much of their office space in DC and have floated return-to-office mandates for federal workers — so it seems likely that DOGE employees will need to work in person. A source confirmed to BI that nearly all employees will be required to work in person.

Employees' — including Musk and Ramaswamy's — specific employment status remains unclear. They could be special government employees who are allowed to work for the federal government for up to 130 days a year. They can be paid or unpaid and are considered temporary workers.

Compared to typical federal workers, special government employees are subject to less strict conflict of interest rules. Some of Musk's companies are under investigation from federal agencies and have government contracts.

Lawmakers aim to start working with DOGE leaders immediately

In early December, Musk and Ramaswamy visited Capitol Hill to meet with members of the House and Senate's DOGE caucuses, as well as a larger group of Republicans. There's some Democratic bipartisan interest in working with the DOGE leaders.

Reps. Bean and Blake Moore of Utah, the co-chairs of the House's DOGE caucus, told BI less than a week before inauguration day that they aim to provide the commission with suggestions for potential changes within the first quarter of the year.

"We're chatting and we're hanging out," Bean said of his communication with Musk and Ramaswamy. He told BI that he wants to advise DOGE on "low-hanging fruit" to target in the first-quarter report.

He told BI that he imagined holding a "DOGE Day" where lawmakers drop around a dozen bills.

Moore said that he expects some early executive orders from Trump, and that while those won't necessarily come straight from DOGE's recommendations, the commission "can be part of it."

Rep. Ro Khanna of California is among the Democrats interested in DOGE and was once in touch with the leaders. Yet Khanna told BI that he hasn't been in touch with Musk and Ramaswamy for more than a month.

"Waiting to see," he said when asked about DOGE's potential first steps, indicating how secretive the commission's plans have been. "Really don't have any details."

Matt Weidinger, a senior fellow at the conservative think tank The American Enterprise Institute who has written about DOGE, said it's still unclear how exactly the commission will communicate with Congress, which controls spending cuts.

"The sort of wild card — the 'we don't know' part of this — is the intersection between DOGE and legislation and the DOGE caucuses: where they will take the DOGE recommendations, if there are any, in terms of legislation to achieve savings in federal programs, which is where the real money resides," he said.

DOGE flexed its power even before inauguration day, though. Musk and Ramaswamy came out against and eventually tanked a Congressional spending bill in December, bringing the government to the brink of a shutdown.

Now that the Trump administration and DOGE are officially taking the reins in Washington, the scope of the commission's influence will likely crystalize, recommendation by recommendation.

Have you applied to work at DOGE? Share your experience and thoughts with this reporter at [email protected].

• Donald Trump has been sworn in as president once again.
• He signed a slew of executive orders on Monday.
• They included establishing DOGE and declaring a "national energy emergency."

A political comeback is complete: President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance were sworn into office in a ceremony beneath the Capitol Rotunda on Monday.

"The golden age of America begins right now," Trump said in his inaugural speech.

A host of dignitaries — including lawmakers, foreign leaders, and members of Trump's coming cabinet — were on hand. Tech leaders in attendance included Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Apple CEO Tim Cook, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, and Google CEO Sundar Pichai.

In a series of speeches throughout the day — his inauguration speech at the Rotunda, a more freewheeling speech in Emancipation Hall at the Capitol, and a third at Capital One Arena — Trump previewed a flurry of forthcoming actions, including declaring a national emergency at the southern border and establishing an "External Revenue Service."

At Capitol One Arena, he signed several executive orders, including one that rescinded 78 Biden-era executive orders and actions. Later on Monday, in the Oval Office, he signed several more, including pardons for January 6 rioters.

Here's what Trump has pledged to do on day one — and what he's actually done.

Energy and environment

Trump has signed an executive order withdrawing the United States from the Paris climate accords, which he also did when he took office in 2017.

Increase fracking and oil drilling: Trump signed an executive order declaring a "national energy emergency" and another designed to ease permitting processes.

Trump's Interior Department will have the power to offer new leases for drilling and natural-gas extraction on federal lands. A last-minute Biden administration ban on deep offshore drilling is set to complicate those actions. While the White House can speed up approval and auction off more leases, it's ultimately up to the energy industry to expand production. Trump also wants to revive canceled projects such as the Keystone XL pipeline that companies have since dropped.

Government restructuring

Remove civil-service protections for federal workers: Trump has said he'll return to his sweeping first-term policy that would have made it easier to fire tens of thousands of federal workers.

On Monday, he signed an executive order instituting a temporary hiring freeze, saying it was "to ensure that we're only hiring competent people who are faithful to the American public." The order says the hiring freeze doesn't apply to the military or "to positions related to immigration enforcement, national security, or public safety."

Trump also signed a separate order requiring federal employees to return to in-person work immediately.

Create the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE): Trump signed an executive order establishing DOGE in the Oval Office on Monday, saying Elon Musk would be "getting an office for about 20 people" in the executive branch.

The order says DOGE will implement the president's push for government efficiency "by modernizing Federal technology and software to maximize governmental efficiency and productivity."

As part of the order, the US Digital Service is set to be renamed to the US DOGE Service. The US Digital Service was created by then-President Barack Obama in 2014 and provided IT consulting services to federal agencies.

Trump's order also includes the formation of DOGE teams at each federal agency. The order says each team will have at least four members, which could consist of a team lead, an engineer, a human-resources specialist, and an attorney.

Shortly after noon on Monday, several organizations filed lawsuits in a bid to get DOGE to comply with a 1972 law. In the meantime, congressional Republicans eagerly welcomed Musk's efforts and have set up ways to coordinate with DOGE.

Trade

Trump didn't impose any tariffs on Monday, saying his planned tariffs on Canada and Mexico would be imposed in February. He didn't specify a date for his planned tariffs on China, saying he was "going to have meetings and calls" with the country's leader, Xi Jinping.

Trump said on Monday that he was considering imposing a universal tariff on all goods entering the US. He added that while the US was "not ready" for a universal tariff, it could be implemented rapidly.

"You put a universal tariff on anybody doing business in the United States, because they're coming in and they're stealing our wealth," Trump said.

Twenty-five percent tariffs on all Mexican and Canadian goods: Just before Thanksgiving, Trump said he'd levy significant tariffs on the US neighbors because of illegal immigration.

Thanks to Congress, presidents can impose tariffs without legislative action. In his first term, Trump used a law that allows the president to impose them because of national security emergencies. President Joe Biden even expanded some of those duties.

A 60% tariff on all Chinese goods: On the campaign trail, Trump discussed raising tariffs to as high as 60% on all Chinese goods. He's also mused about other wide-ranging tariffs.

Trump has long complained that the US trade deficit with China is too large. The influx of deadly fentanyl, of which the Drug Enforcement Administration has said China is a major source, has only exacerbated those tensions.

The creation of an external revenue service: In his inaugural speech, Trump said he'd establish a new agency to collect tariffs and other foreign fees. "It will be massive amounts of money pouring into our treasury coming from foreign sources," Trump said.

It's unclear exactly how this service will be set up. Customs and Border Protection is already responsible for collecting customs, and only Congress could set up a new agency.

Effectively pulling the US out of the global tax deal: On Monday, Trump signed an executive order declaring that the "Global Tax Deal has no force or effect in the United States."

This move withdraws US support for the international tax agreement, which aims to establish a 15% global corporate minimum tax. Congress never passed measures to comply with the deal, leaving participating countries able to impose top-up levies on some US multinationals.

The order also calls on officials to look into "options for protection from extraterritorial tax measures."

Crackdown on illegal immigration

Trump signed several executive orders related to immigration on Monday, including declaring a "national emergency" at the southern border.

He also signed an executive order that aims to revoke birthright citizenship, setting up a legal challenge over the meaning of the 14th Amendment.

Trump and his allies have argued that the amendment shouldn't be interpreted to apply to the children of people living in the country illegally. Multiple groups have said they'd challenge any such executive action in court.

He also signed an executive order designating drug cartels as foreign terrorist organizations.

Trump said numerous times during the campaign that starting on his first day, he'd take action to begin "the largest deportation operation" in the nation's history.

In his inaugural speech, he said he'd "begin the process of returning millions and millions of criminal aliens back to the places from which they came."

Later, in the Oval Office, Trump said Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids would start soon, though he didn't specify a time.

Crime and justice

Pardons for January 6 rioters: Trump signed an executive order pardoning roughly 1,500 people who were involved in the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot.

The order Trump signed also commuted the sentences of 14 other individuals, who included members of far-right extremist groups such as the Oath Keepers and the Proud Boys.

Culture war

Trump said in his inaugural address that it would "henceforth be the official policy of the United States government that there are only two genders, male and female."

The president signed an executive order in the Oval Office that an aide described as "protecting women from radical gender ideologies," which included preventing federal funds from being used to "promote gender ideology" and changes in federal policy to rigidly define terms such as "sex," "man," and "woman" as binary phrases.

Trump also took broad aim at diversity, equity, and inclusion policies and pro-LGTBQ+ policies put in place by the Biden administration. In another order, he ended all federal DEI initiatives and terminated all DEI-related and "environmental justice" offices and positions, such as "chief diversity officer" positions, and all "equity" actions, initiatives, or programs and "equity-related" grants or contracts.

Another executive order renamed the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America, a change that Senate Democrats earlier this month indicated they'd be willing to support if the president worked with them on an economic plan to reduce the cost of living for average Americans.

TikTok ban

Trump signed an executive order halting the ban on TikTok for 75 days. While signing the order, Trump told reporters that TikTok could be worth $1 trillion and that the US should own half of it.

According to the divest-or-ban law passed by the Senate in April, TikTok had to cease its US operations on January 19 unless its China-based owner, ByteDance, divested itself from its US holdings.

Correction: January 20, 2025 — An earlier version of this story misstated Jeff Bezos' current position at Amazon. He is the founder and executive chairman, not the CEO.

• Democrats may need to help Republicans raise the debt ceiling this year.
• If that happens, Democrats aren't going to do it for free. They'll likely demand concessions.
• Rep. Ro Khanna, a Silicon Valley Democrat, says his party should demand a federal minimum wage hike.

At some point in the next few months, Congress will have to raise the debt ceiling.

For now, Republicans are planning to do it on their own. But if past is prologue, they'll probably need votes from across the aisle — and Democrats are likely to demand something in return.

Rep. Ro Khanna, a Democrat who represents Silicon Valley, told Business Insider this week that he believes the price should be an increase in the federal minimum wage.

"We should force Republicans to vote on it," the California Democrat told BI.

Khanna did not specify a particular level at which he'd like to raise the wage, but Democrats generally support a $15 per hour federal minimum wage. Some, such as Sen. Bernie Sanders, have proposed pushing it even higher, to $17 per hour.

President-elect Donald Trump said in December that he would "consider" raising the minimum wage, but several Republican lawmakers later told BI that they opposed the idea.

Scott Bessent, Trump's nominee for secretary of the treasury, said at a Senate confirmation hearing on Thursday that he does not believe the current $7.25 per hour federal minimum wage should change.

It's not clear if Democrats will follow Khanna's lead, though he told BI that he would "make the case to the caucus."

Minimum wage increases tend to be popular among both Democratic and Republican voters — in November, several Republican-leaning states passed minimum wage hikes via ballot measures.

Democrats still have to figure out their price for helping Republicans

As of now, Republicans want to avoid handing any leverage to Democrats in the first few months of Trump's presidency. They plan to include a debt ceiling hike in a broader party-line "reconciliation" bill containing a smattering of Trump's priorities on energy, immigration, border security, and taxes.

But there's a good chance that won't work, given some hardline Republicans' deep reservations about raising the debt ceiling without dramatic spending cuts. Some Republicans have never voted to raise the debt ceiling before, and in December, dozens of them openly defied Trump's call to raise the debt ceiling after Elon Musk helped tank a government funding bill.

If Republicans can't do it themselves, Democrats will have the chance to make demands, lest the country breach the debt ceiling and trigger a fiscal crisis.

"I'm not a cheap date," Democratic Rep. Jim McGovern of Massachusetts told BI. "The idea that we're just going to help them out when they can't get their own members to cooperate, those days are gone."

Of the several House Democrats that BI spoke to, only Khanna was willing to name a specific price. Others demurred, saying they were waiting to see what negotiations would look like in the coming months, and underscoring that Democrats would have to decide on their approach collectively.

"The sentiment from our caucus is: If you need our help on anything, you're going to have to help us," Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York told BI. "All of this, I think, is subject to many of our internal conversations."

Democrats could also use their leverage to try to halt the deep cuts to federal government spending that Republicans may pursue in the coming months, rather than making an affirmative policy demand.

"There's clearly a whole host of things that I think the caucus would have as priorities," Democratic Rep. Joe Morelle of New York told BI.

• Trump says his second inauguration will be held in the Capitol rotunda.
• The ceremony is usually outside, but is being held indoors due to freezing temperatures.
• It's the first time this has happened since Ronald Reagan's 2nd inauguration in 1985.

President-elect Donald Trump announced on Friday that his second inauguration will be moved indoors due to expected freezing temperatures.

"The weather forecast for Washington, D.C., with the windchill factor, could take temperatures into severe record lows," Trump wrote in a Truth Social post. "There is an Arctic blast sweeping the Country. I don't want to see people hurt, or injured, in any way."

Presidential swearing-in ceremonies are typically held outdoors on a platform in front of the United States Capitol, allowing crowds to view the event from the National Mall. However, Trump said on Friday that the ceremonies would instead take place inside the Capitol Rotunda.

It's not the first time an American president has been sworn in beneath the rotunda.

President Ronald Reagan was also sworn in under the Capitol rotunda in 1985, when he was inaugurated for his second term, also after freezing temperatures prompted organizers to make a last-minute change of plans.

Trump referenced Reagan's 1985 inauguration in his Friday Truth Social post, adding that the "various Dignitaries and Guests will be brought into the Capitol." Several business and tech CEOs are expected to be in attendance.

The president-elect also said that the presidential parade would be moved to Capital One arena, where a live viewing will also take place. Trump said he would travel to the arena after he's sworn in.

• Pam Bondi owned $3.9 million in Truth Social stock as of mid-December, per financial documents.
• She also earned more than $1 million last year from lobbying.
• Her total net worth in December was more than $12.1 million.

President-Elect Donald Trump's nominee to be the next attorney general of the United States, Pam Bondi, disclosed owning more than $3.9 million in stock in Trump's "Truth Social" platform in December.

Bondi disclosed the holdings in a statement of net worth she submitted on December 16 as part of her Senate confirmation process. Business Insider obtained a copy of that document, along a more detailed financial disclosure, on Thursday.

The former Florida Attorney General disclosed a total net worth of $12.1 million between her and her husband. Since Bondi's tenure ended in 2019, she has worked as a lobbyist and a consultant.

Bondi's financial disclosure, which covers all major financial activity from last year, lists a $1,067,000 salary from the lobbying firm Ballard Partners, along with $520,000 in consulting fees from the America First Policy Institute and $203,738 in legal fees from a law firm in Fort Lauderdale.

She also earned $27,600 in contributor fees from the conservative network Newsmax. Bondi's lobbying clients, according to the disclosure, include Alden Torch Financial, multiple sheriff's associations, and a refrigerant manufacturer called iGas USA. She also provided legal services to the pharmaceutical company Pfizer.

According to the disclosure, Bondi acquired the shares of Truth Social stock as compensation for consulting work when the company completed its SPAC merger and went public last March.

Bondi received $2,969,563 worth of shares at the time, according to the document. That means she earned almost $1 million from the investment in the subsequent nine months.

It's not clear whether Bondi would be required to divest from those holdings if confirmed to her job. Those details would be contained in Bondi's ethics agreement, a copy of which had not been made public as of publication on Thursday.

The Trump-Vance transition did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Many of Trump's nominees, in consultation with ethics officials in the executive branch, have agreed to divest from some of their assets in order to avoid conflicts of interest.

Bondi was nominated by Trump to lead the Department of Justice after former Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida withdrew from consideration.

Her confirmation hearings began on Wednesday, and she is widely expected to be successfully confirmed by the Senate.

• TikTok is set to be banned in the United States on Sunday, one day before Trump becomes president.
• He's pledged to save the app — and some Democrats hope he's able to.
• "You've got to be supportive of anyone trying to keep it alive at this point," one Democrat told BI.

With a TikTok ban appearing imminent, some Democratic lawmakers are suddenly finding themselves on the same page as President-elect Donald Trump.

Trump, despite his efforts to ban the app via executive order during his first administration, has pledged to "save" the app. He's set to take office on Monday, one day after the ban is set to go into effect.

"Like a broken clock is right twice a day, Donald Trump might be right on this one," Rep. Mark Pocan, a Wisconsin Democrat who's long been outspoken against a ban, told BI. "I think you've got to be supportive of anyone trying to keep it alive at this point."

"I would welcome the new administration figuring out a path forward so that TikTok can actually continue," Democratic Rep. Robert Garcia of California, another longtime opponent of a ban, told BI.

Pocan and Garcia were among the 50 House Democrats who voted against a bill last March that required ByteDance, the Chinese company that owns TikTok, to sell the popular video-sharing app or face a ban amid national security concerns.

As Congress began to consider the bill, Trump came out against a ban, arguing that doing so would only benefit Meta. Congress ultimately passed the bill by a wide bipartisan vote and President Joe Biden signed it into law, setting January 19 as the deadline for a sale.

In the meantime, Trump positioned himself as a potential TikTok savior and established a campaign account on the platform. Late last month, Trump asked the Supreme Court to pause the ban until he takes office, though it appears likely that the court will allow it to move forward.

Trump is now considering taking executive action to halt the enforcement of a ban, according to multiple reports, though it's unclear whether such a move would withstand a legal challenge.

"President Trump has repeatedly expressed his desire to save Tik Tok, and there's no better deal maker than President Trump," Trump-Vance Transition Spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt told BI in a statement.

Some business leaders with ties to Trump, including Elon Musk, have been floated as potential buyers.

"My guess is, he's got a different motive than I do," Pocan said. "Hopefully it's not just to have some friend of his have the opportunity to purchase it or make money."

Democratic Rep. Maxwell Frost of Florida told BI that he hopes Trump can somehow prevent a ban, even if it's "obviously not good for us politically if he saves TikTok."

"If Joe Biden was the one to ban TikTok and Donald Trump was the one to save it, unfortunately, there's a lot of young voters out there who that might be more important to them than other issues," Frost said, adding that Trump would also be saving small businesses who rely on the app. "We warned about these things when the bill was being crafted."

"I've had dozens and dozens of creators and small business owners reach out to me and say, 'I'm going to lose my livelihood," Garcia said. "I'm not sure that people understand how dependent some small businesses are on TikTok."

Other Democrats appear to be grappling with the political implications of the looming ban as well.

On Thursday, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said that Democrats supported legislation to give ByteDance more time to sell TikTok.

"The law passed last year was intended to sever TikTok from the influence of the CCP while keeping the app available for Americans," Schumer said on the Senate floor. "It's clear that more time is needed to find an American buyer and not disrupt the lives and livelihoods of millions of Americans."

Democratic senators tried to pass a bill to give ByteDance more time on Wednesday night via voice vote. Republican Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas objected, arguing that TikTok is harmful to children's mental health, even aside from concerns about national security.

• The idea of a 32-hour workweek has gained steam over the years, and some businesses are trying it.
• Now, a group of progressive staffers are hoping to bring it to Congress.
• They're calling on lawmakers to enact 32-hour weeks on Capitol Hill when Congress isn't in session.

The 32-hour workweek has been steadily growing more popular. More and more businesses are experimenting with versions of it, and many workers say it makes them not just happier, but more productive.

Now, some are hoping to bring it to the halls of Congress.

In an open letter set to be sent later on Thursday, the Congressional Progressive Staff Association will call on members of Congress to consider implementing a "rotating" 32-hour workweek for staff.

"By establishing a rotating 32-hour workweek for District and DC staff, you can help increase retention, boost productivity, and improve the quality of life for your team," reads the letter.

Congress has a unique schedule — and unique workplace arrangements.

When the House or Senate is in session, lawmakers are in Washington taking votes, attending committee hearings, and working long hours alongside staff out of their Capitol Hill offices. When they're out of session, lawmakers are typically back at their district offices, meeting with constituents and holding events.

Under the proposed plan, staffers in Washington would work a 32-hour week when lawmakers are back in their districts, while district-based staffers would work a 32-hour week when lawmakers are in Washington.

The letter floats multiple possible versions of a potential 32-hour workweek, including having every employee work 8 hours for the same 4 days, staggering when employees' workweeks take place in order to ensure the office is staffed for all five days of the week, or having employees work five days a week with reduced hours each day.

"Working 32 hours, employees have a more substantial reprieve from work and therefore are able to complete the same tasks in less time," the letter reads. "If implemented for Congressional staff, Members could see the same increase in job satisfaction among their teams, while maintaining or increasing their level of productivity."

Michael Suchecki, a spokesman for the Congressional Progressive Staff Association, told BI in an interview this week that the proposal is not about bringing further perks to what's already a prestigious job, but to "set a precedent for everyday working Americans across the country, and help turn the page to what the future of the workweek can look like for everyone."

In the letter, the staffers argue that making the change will help to combat not just burnout among staffers but also turnover, a common occurrence given that staffers can often make more money with less demanding hours at private-sector jobs in Washington.

"We need to make sure that Congress is still able to draw in and retain the best talent, as opposed to having one of the highest turnovers of any industry in the world," said Suchecki.

Some in Congress have proposed legislation to implement a 32-hour workweek nationwide. Last year, Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont introduced the "Thirty Two Hour Workweek Act."

• Some Republicans have urged Trump and his nominees to kill the IRS's free direct-tax-filing tool.
• Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Chris Coons are urging them to keep it.
• They said the program fits the bill of one of DOGE's reported goals.

As some Republicans urge President-elect Donald Trump to kill the IRS's free direct-tax-filing tool, Democrats are attempting to preserve it.

In a letter to the Treasury secretary nominee, Scott Bessent, and the IRS commissioner nominee, Billy Long, Democratic Sens. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Chris Coons of Delaware touted what they see as the benefits of the program.

"Direct File is making the process of interacting with the government more efficient, a goal we all can agree on," Warren and Coons wrote in a letter exclusively provided to Business Insider. Twenty-two other senators and 113 House members, all Democrats, also signed on.

The duo also said the program "fits the bill" of a program that's reportedly being explored by Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy's "Department of Government Efficiency": a mobile app to allow Americans to file their taxes directly to the IRS for free.

"The Direct File pilot program has proved that it is efficient, cost effective, user friendly, and secure — a pilot program that already meets the DOGE leaders' goals," the senators wrote, adding that, as Musk and Ramaswamy have said, "Americans deserve a simple and free way to meet their tax obligations online."

The program, enabled by the 2022 passage of the Inflation Reduction Act, launched in 12 states last year and is set to expand to 13 more states this year. More than 140,000 have filed their federal tax returns via the program, according to the IRS.

The direct-file tool is designed to make filing taxes easier and simpler. Historically, many Americans have had to spend significant amounts of time on tax preparation or pay money to private services like TurboTax.

"Most Americans have simple tax returns, yet filing is still arduous and frustrating," the senators wrote. "The complexity of the tax code makes it difficult for average Americans to ensure they get it right, while also protecting their sensitive financial and personal data."

Last month, 29 House Republicans sent a letter to Trump urging him to kill the program via executive order as soon as day one of his presidency. They cast the tool as an example of the "weaponization of government," saying it gave too much power to the IRS.

It's not clear how the incoming Trump administration will approach the program, and the Trump-Vance transition did not immediately respond to a request for comment for this story.

• Pete Hegseth, Trump's controversial pick to be the secretary of defense, made millions at Fox News.
• He's received $4.6 million in salary income from the network since the beginning of 2023.
• He's also made $900,000 from 41 paid speeches and hundreds of thousands more from books.

President-elect Donald Trump's nominee to lead the Department of Defense, Pete Hegseth, has made millions of dollars per year working as a Fox News host, according to a financial disclosure made public on Monday.

Hegseth disclosed more than $4.6 million in salary income from the network. Because the disclosure covers both 2023 and 2024, he likely earned more than $2 million annually. A spokesperson for Fox News said his contract was terminated on November 12, 2024, the same day his nomination was announced.

In addition to his former day job on the conservative-leaning network, Hegseth has also had a lucrative career as a public speaker and author. His disclosure lists 41 paid speeches that he's delivered around the country since the beginning of 2023, for which he received a total of $900,000.

Hegseth often received $20,000 or more for a single speech, whether he was speaking at a chapel in Washington state, to an anti-abortion group in Pennsylvania, or at a Heritage Foundation event in Washington, DC.

In one instance, Hegseth was paid $150,000 to deliver a single speech to the American Legislative Exchange Council in Virginia in February 2023.

Hegseth has also made hundreds of thousands of dollars, at least, from writing books.

His disclosure lists a $150,000 advance payment for his 2022 book, "Battle for the American Mind," and $348,000 for his 2024 book, "The War on Warriors." The disclosure also lists between $100,000 and $1 million in royalties for each book.

The defense secretary nominee owns between $15,000 and $50,000 in bitcoin and has received between $100,001 and $1 million in rental income from a Baltimore rental house he sold in 2023.

The Trump-Vance transition did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A transition spokesman previously told BI in a statement that "all nominees and appointees will comply with the ethical obligations of their respective agencies."

Hegseth is likely to face the most bruising confirmation battle of any of Trump's nominees. He has faced accusations of sexual assault and drinking on the job, which he has denied. He has also voiced opposition to women serving in combat roles in the military, though he recently recanted that position.

• Former Rep. Lee Zeldin, Trump's pick to lead the EPA, made $186,000 from paid op-eds and speeches.
• Some of those op-eds criticized climate policies and ESG.
• The former NY congressman also made $45,475 from gambling at casinos.

Former Rep. Lee Zeldin, President-elect Donald Trump's nominee to lead the Environmental Protection Agency, has made millions of dollars in recent years from consulting, speaking fees, and paid op-eds, according to a financial disclosure made public on Saturday.

That includes tens of thousands of dollars to write about environmental and climate change-related topics. In one instance, Zeldin was paid $25,000 for an op-ed in which he likened environmental, social, and governance investing, or ESG, to the practices of disgraced cryptocurrency entrepreneur Sam Bankman-Fried.

A staunchly pro-Trump Republican first elected to Congress in 2014, Zeldin left office after mounting an unsuccessful bid for governor of New York in 2022. As retiring lawmakers in both parties often do, Zeldin cashed in, establishing a consulting firm to advise corporate clients while enmeshing himself in the well-funded world of conservative political advocacy.

It's paid off. According to the disclosure document, which covers Zeldin's major financial activities since the beginning of 2023, the ex-congressman has made a total of $775,000 in salary income and between $1 million and $5 million in dividends from his main firm, Zeldin Consulting.

He's also received $144,999 from America First Works, a pro-Trump nonprofit where he has a board seat, along with $65,500 from paid speeches and $15,000 from an entity called "Plymouth Union Public Research."

He also got lucky — literally — winning a combined $45,475 in the last two years from gambling at the Golden Nugget, Venetian, and Atlantis casinos.

"All nominees and appointees will comply with the ethical obligations of their respective agencies," Trump-Vance Transition Spokesperson Brian Hughes said in a statement.

Zeldin did not respond to a request for comment.

$120,500 for writing op-eds

The ex-congressman's disclosure reveals a variety of income streams, including substantial speaking fees from GOP organizations in Florida and California, a Long Island synagogue, and a Turning Point USA event in Michigan in June. In multiple instances, Zeldin was paid over $10,000 for a single appearance.

He also disclosed a combined $26,775 in payments from Fox News and Nexstar Media Group for "use of media studio."

The document lists payments from several public relations firms for paid op-eds, listing the news outlet and the date of publication. The titles of those opinion pieces are not listed, but Business Insider identified several that matched the publication and date included in the disclosure.

Among the most notable were a series of paid op-eds on climate issues — Zeldin could soon lead the agency responsible for the federal government's environmental policies.

In an op-ed for Real Clear Policy published in March 2023 entitled "How Congress Can Stop the Next FTX," Zeldin called on Congress to investigate ESG practices and the nonprofit watchdog Better Markets, arguing that companies may use ESG to avoid regulatory scrutiny in the same manner that Bankman-Fried used political contributions to curry favor with Washington.

The disclosure indicates that Zeldin was paid $25,000 to write that op-ed. He also appears to have made an additional $10,000 for another Newsday op-ed in August about ESG and $3,000 for a Fox News op-ed in July that criticized New York Gov. Kathy Hochul's climate policies and called on her to lift the state's fracking ban.

Zeldin was also paid to write about other topics, including $10,000 for a New York Post op-ed criticizing Vice President Kamala Harris' housing policy proposals, $10,000 for a Washington Times op-ed calling on regulators to crack down on China-linked financial platforms, and $15,000 for a Washington Examiner op-ed accusing the Biden administration of targeting Republican-run states via Medicaid regulations.

In some cases, Zeldin was paid even when the articles never saw the light of day. His disclosures list two op-eds that were never published, for which he received $10,000 and $30,000.

In total, Zeldin reported $120,500 in op-ed payments. The original clients who made those payments are unclear, and Zeldin and the Trump-Vance transition did not respond to a question about the original sources.

As with other nominees, Zeldin has agreed to divest himself from his consulting business if he's confirmed as the next EPA administrator, according to his ethics agreement. His confirmation hearing is set for Thursday, January 16.