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Hi Reader,

“If this was done by another country, we absolutely would call this corruption.”

That’s what Kristofer Harrison said last month when ProPublica reporting revealed that President Donald Trump’s administration was using the U.S. government’s foreign policy apparatus to advance the business interests of Elon Musk, a top Trump adviser and the world’s richest man <[link removed]>.

Our reporters interviewed dozens of current and former officials from the U.S. and Gambia and obtained internal government documents, which showed that U.S. diplomats were coaxing, lobbying and browbeating government ministers in developing countries to give licenses to Starlink. Ten current and former State Department officials described these actions as an alarming departure from standard diplomatic practice — because of both the tactics used and the person who would benefit the most from them.

“Because it is corruption,” said Harrison, who served as a high-level State Department official in the George W. Bush administration.

“I honestly didn’t think we were capable of doing this,” another official told ProPublica. “That is bad on every level.”

As a ProPublica reader, you know that we’ve earned a national reputation for exposing the covert influence of corporate power on public policy. We know how to dig deep and root out the facts that reveal how business shapes government, and our reporting has driven reforms at the highest levels.

We’ve looked closely at every presidential administration since our founding nearly two decades ago. Trump's second term is no different. Just in the last two months, we have:

Revealed that more than a dozen high-ranking executive branch officials and congressional aides have made well-timed securities trades <[link removed]> since Trump took office in January, including Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy <[link removed]> and Attorney General Pam Bondi <[link removed]>, most of them selling stock shortly before tariff announcements sent markets plunging. (In response to questions, the officials who made the trades either said they had no insider information that would have helped them time their decisions, or they did not respond to questions about the transactions.)

Identified two <[link removed]> different <[link removed]> Department of Government Efficiency aides who are helping to dismantle the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau while also likely violating federal conflict-of-interest rules and laws, according to experts. (Neither the aides, nor the CFPB or DOGE responded to our requests for comment. The White House said that “these allegations are another attempt to diminish DOGE’s critical mission.”)

And pieced together the starkest example of the State Department intervening on behalf of the satellite internet company Starlink <[link removed]> by traveling to Gambia’s capital, Banjul, and interviewing dozens of current and former officials from both the U.S. and Gambia, most of whom requested anonymity for fear of retaliation.

In response to our detailed questions, the State Department issued a statement celebrating Starlink. “Starlink is an America-made product that has been a game changer in helping remote areas around the world gain internet connectivity,” a spokesperson wrote. “Any patriotic American should want to see an American company’s success on the global stage, especially over compromised Chinese competitors.” Starlink did not respond to requests for comment.

In a statement, the White House said Musk has nothing to do with deals involving Starlink and that every administration official follows ethical guidelines. “For the umpteenth time,” spokesperson Harrison Fields said in an email, “President Trump will not tolerate any conflicts of interest.”

As ProPublica readers, we know that you, too, have no tolerance for conflicts of interest. You want your news to be nonpartisan and independent. <[link removed]>

A healthy democracy depends on fearless investigative journalism that digs deep into potential conflicts of interest, exposes corruption and holds power to account. ProPublica has the independence and support to investigate those in power — from government officials to corporate leaders — because we’re a nonprofit newsroom. Our funding comes from readers like you, not ads or wealthy owners. We work in the public interest. And our ability to conduct thorough reporting for all our investigations is thanks to you.

Give today and help ProPublica ensure that we continue to have the resources to follow the most important stories wherever they lead — for however long it takes. <[link removed]>

My very best,

Jessica Rojas <[link removed]> Annual Giving Officer

Proud ProPublican <[link removed]>

Donate to ProPublica <[link removed]>

 

 
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