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Meet the Press NOW — July 1
00:49:46
Sen. John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.) joins Meet the Press NOW after winning his primary against progressive candidate state Sen. Julie Gonzalez. In his latest financial disclosure, President Trump reported earning an estimated $2.2 billion, including over a billion dollars in crypto ventures. Rep. Maggie Goodlander (D-N.H.) and Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.) join Meet the Press NOW in the latest installment of NBC News’ Common Ground series to discuss their bipartisan legislation that bans senior officials in government from individual stock trading.
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- [00:01]
David Remnick
Right now, we are living through some of the most tumultuous political times our country has ever known. I'm David Remnick, and each week on the New Yorker Radio Hour, I'll try to make sense of what's happening alongside politicians and thinkers like Cory Booker, Nancy Pelosi, Liz Cheney, Tim Waltz, Ketanji Brown Jackson, Newt Gingrich, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. Charlamagne, tha God, and so many more. That's all in the New Yorker Radio Hour. Wherever you listen to podcasts,
- [00:30]
Craig Melvin
I'm Craig Melvin. Cheers.
- [00:32]
Cheers, cheers.
- [00:33]
I've always been a glass half full kind of guy, and now I'm talking to some people who look at the world that way, too. Some really fascinating folks who share their defining moments, their triumphs, their challenges. Their stories are funny and quite candid. So I hope you'll join me each week. And who knows, you might just come away with your own glass Half Full.
- [00:54]
Podcast Promo Voice
Search Glass Half Full with Craig Melvin From Today on YouTube and wherever you get your podcasts.
- [01:11]
Melanie Zanona
Welcome to Meet the press Now. I'm Melanie Zenona. And if it's Wednesday, we have election results. Progressives notching another big win in last night's Colorado primaries. Part of a wave of Democratic socialists winning in deep blue pockets of the country as Democrats grapple with the direction of their party and their base heading into the midterms. Democratic socialist Melat Kiros defeating incumbent Congresswoman Diana DeGette, who's represented Colorado's 1st District for more than three decades. Kiros message leaning on issues that have animated the progressive base, including immigration and Israel. Speaking to supporters last night, Kiros celebrating her victory as proof of a larger shift brewing inside her party.
- [01:53]
Melak Kiros
We will not wait to take the fight to Donald Trump and the oligarchy. We will not wait. We will not wait to abolish ICE and pass Medicare for all. We will not wait to put an end to the politics of the past, to get big money out of our politics and to reject corporate PACs at AIPAC. And no, we will not wait to end the genocide in Palestine. We are winning from coast to coast from every level of office. We are taking back our party and our country.
- [02:50]
Melanie Zanona
But while the insurgent progressive message resonated in deep blue Denver, it didn't resonate enough in the Democratic Senate primary, where incumbent Senator John Hickenlooper fended off a surprisingly tough challenge from State Senator Julie Gonzalez to cite massively outraising and outspending her in the campaign. In his victory speech last night, Senator Hickenlooper tried to refocus on uniting his party.
- [03:14]
John Hickenlooper
Let me tell everybody that Democrats are united. Democrats are united. We're going to take back the U.S. senate. We're going to take back the House. We're taped by the House. And then we're going to stop President Trump in his tracks.
- [03:34]
Melanie Zanona
And in another warning sign for establishment Democrats, Colorado Senator and former presidential candidate Michael Bennett lost his primary bid for governor despite being the early juggernaut. He was defeated by state Attorney General Phil Weiser, who pitched himself to voters as the feistier candidate to take on Donald Trump. And Colorado, in the face of a
- [03:55]
Craig Melvin
lawless, bullying Trump administration trying to intimidate
- [03:59]
Melanie Zanona
us, rip away our rights and freedoms,
- [04:02]
Craig Melvin
you made it clear that we need
- [04:05]
Melanie Zanona
a leader who will fight back and
- [04:07]
John Hickenlooper
never bend the knee.
- [04:10]
Melanie Zanona
President Trump and Republicans, meanwhile, are signaling they are eager to focus on the insurgent left wing of the Democratic Party in the upcoming midterms, with President Trump moments ago renewing his attacks on Democratic socialists as, quote, communists as he spoke in North Dakota in the opening of the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library. Joining me now from Capitol Hill, actually on set with me is senior national political reporter Sahil Kapoor and Kyle Clark, anchor and political reporter for our Denver affiliate kusa. I'm going to start with Sahil, who is on set with us because Congress is actually not in session as they were supposed to be. But I want to start with these results last night. I know Capitol Hill is go, but what kind of reaction are you getting from Capitol Hill and from Congress about these results last night?
- [04:54]
Sahil Kapoor
It's a bad time to be a Democratic incumbent in Washington. I think that's the through line of all these races we saw in Colorado. We've seen this happen in New York and elsewhere around the country as well. I think Democratic leadership is still trying to process what this moment means. Is it a matter of ideological divides? Are voters demanding that Democrats move to the left? Is it a generational matter? Is it throw the bums out? Is it all of the above? The generational contrast in the Melak Kiros race is remarkable because she was born in 1997. And after Diana Deget first won that seat, she's held that seat for longer than her now. Her opponent has been alive. So I think all of that kind of factors into how Democrats are trying to understand this moment and how Democratic leadership feels they need to respond.
- [05:35]
Melanie Zanona
Yeah. Talk to me more about the Democratic leadership and specifically Hakeem Jeffries. How is he viewing this sort of shift within his own party?
- [05:42]
Sahil Kapoor
I think he's probably happy that the House is out of session today because he gets to, you know, sit with this and process how he wants to respond to it. He did put up some congratulatory tweets congratulating Melak Quiros to didn't have a whole lot to say about her beyond that, but said they're going to take back the majority. He also congratulated Manny rutinel in Colorado's 8th district. That's going to be a big, big important race. And he had, you know, he talked about him as the right candidate to win that district.
- [06:06]
Melanie Zanona
You know, I mentioned that Republicans and Trump are calling these candidates communists. But talk to me about how you think Republicans are really going to try to message this in the midterms.
- [06:15]
Sahil Kapoor
I think part of it is the word socialist doesn't have the same sting as it once did. So President Trump is calling them communists. But yes, it's, it's the same strategy that Republicans have used to varying degrees of success in many years. They're going to try to tie the Democrats to the leftmost wing of the party. And will they be more successful this time around because the left wing insurgents are doing better here? That's an open question. It may be possible that that works better, but we're also seeing it happen more in big cities and dark blue districts like Denver last night and Manhattan, New York City. We're not really seeing as much of it in the suburbs. Democratic socialists are not winning it primaries in these competitive purple districts where Democrats have to win. I did speak moments ago, or rather a few hours ago to Steny Hoyer, the former House majority leader. He's disappointed, he said, in the result. He said DeGette was a good member of Congress or rather is still a good member of Congress and that she was unfairly tagged as not being enough of a fighter. He did warn that if Democrats get tagged writ large as socialists, they're not going to win nationally.
- [07:16]
Melanie Zanona
And Diana DeGette was an impeachment manager, so she has been someone fighting on the front lines here. We also saw Democrats make their pick in Colorado's 8th district. This is a key flip opportunity. Talk to me about that race and how confident are Democrats that they can flip that seat?
- [07:30]
Sahil Kapoor
Very confident in large part because of the environment. Gabe Evans is a first term member. He won only by about 2,500 votes last time in what's, in what was a much better national environment than we are expecting in 2026. That's their main source of optimism. Democrats are going to run on the Medicaid cuts that Gabe Evans supported in President Trump's big beautiful bill. They're going to highlight the cost of living and accuse Gabe Evans and President Trump of failing to make good on that promise. But Republicans also feel somewhat confident because Manny Rudenell does have a very progressive record that they're going to try to tag him as out of touch. They're going to try to tag him as too much of an extremist. And Republicans are very aware that a number of Democrats are on the record saying maybe he can't win a general election. They were arguing during the primary that his challenger, more moderate challenger, was a better candidate.
- [08:16]
Melanie Zanona
Definitely a race to watch. Sahil Kafoor, thank you, Kyle. I want to turn to you now. What were your takeaways from last night?
- [08:27]
Kyle Clark
I think what I heard from Democratic voters and I think what we saw in the results last night in Colorado was not necessarily a referendum on the age of candidates or on incumbency, but about action and about whether they're being effective in delivering what Democratic primary voters say they want done as priorities. Because Diana get was a very progressive member of Congress. She said all of the right things to Democratic voters but was unable able to show anything for it in terms of results. And that was the opening that Democratic socialist Melat Kiros had to say, hey, listen, if nothing else, send me in with a different style and a different approach to hold out and force concessions from other Democrats and maybe we can deliver on some of these priorities. And I think that that infused a couple races in Colorado last night.
- [09:17]
Melanie Zanona
Something else that stood out to me is that both Hickenlooper and kiros won by 10 points each on opposite ends, of course, of this Democratic divide. What does that tell us about where Colorado voters are right now?
- [09:31]
Kyle Clark
I would urge people not to look at those two races together because they're wildly different situations.
- [09:36]
Brian Chung
Right.
- [09:37]
Kyle Clark
It's different electorates with, with different takeaways. Hickenlooper was running a statewide race with a more moderate population of voters. He also is the best known name in Colorado politics. He had an enormous war chest that fended off top tier challengers. He was ready for action. So while the critique stands against Hickenlooper from Democrats, you hear it a lot that he has not been able to deliver on their key priorities. He fended off the top tier challengers instead got a lesser known state senator who didn't have appeal outside Denver and wasn't able to fundraise. While in Denver you have a much more liberal base of voters. Diana DeGette, facing a lot of the Same criticisms, much more progressive than John Hickenlooper. She got caught flat footed. She was not ready for this challenge. She's never had a success or a serious primary challenge. And the quality of the challenger may lot kiros if Americans are just getting to see and hear her. She is a very effective messenger for her far left views in the same way that New York City Mayor Zoran Mandani is. She is eloquent, she is thoughtful and she's not confrontational. She tries to meet people where they are and say, I bet we agree on more than we disagree.
- [10:49]
Melanie Zanona
And then let's talk about the race for governor because both Michael Bennett and Phil Weiser had pretty similar platforms. So how was wiser more effectively able to harness the anti established energy in the party?
- [11:03]
Kyle Clark
I think it's because he painted Michael Bennett as a creature of Washington and that's how Phil weiser overcame a 25 to 30 point deficit in this race to eventually win by double digits. His message to folks in Colorado Democratic primary voters who had supported both him for AG and Bennett for Senate in the past was, listen, leave Michael Bennett where he is. He's doing an okay job in Washington. He could be a little bit tougher on Trump, but, but leave him there. Don't bring Washington here, all right? We don't want that style of problem solving here. I'm promising more fresh action, more direct confrontation with Donald Trump. And I think that was the edge for Weiser. And at the end of the day, it traps Michael Bennet in a job that honestly it appears that he hates. He wants out of Washington. He wants out of the Senate, but voters told him, don't quit your day job.
- [11:45]
Melanie Zanona
Really important insight and reporting. Kyle, thank you so much. Joining me fresh off last night's victory is Colorado Democratic Senator John Hickenlooper. Senator, thank you so much for joining us. We really appreciate you being here. But let's start with your victory last night. We have obviously seen incumbents struggling across the country. And In Colorado, Congresswoman DeGette lost her primary last night. But why do you think you were able to defeat your progressive challenger while she was not?
- [12:13]
John Hickenlooper
Well, I'll tell you, we've been working at this for more than a year of really fighting against Trump's chaos in Washington. You know, when he first came in and passed that big bad betrayal act which took away health care, hundreds of thousands of Coloradans, we pushed back. We fought on that. We continue to fight on that. His, his tariffs were a ridiculous attack on small business people across Colorado. We did Roundtables in every part of the state. You look at what he's done with the war and the increase in not just gasoline and diesel costs, but fertilizer, things that farmers and ranchers in Colorado need to be able to get their crops in. He's been relentlessly anti the working person, the small farmer, the small business person. And we've gone to task on that. We went after him on his ice, you know, taking innocent people out of their cars, beating them, you know, locking them up without even a warrant, deporting them without a hearing. We fought hard at I've been to the detention facility facilities multiple times and gotten people released, gotten people who've been taken out of the country back into the country. And I think part of that is you've got to have you're fighting, but you also want to make sure you have some results.
- [13:31]
Melanie Zanona
Yet your opponent, Julie Gonzalez, was still able to win 45% of the vote, which is not nothing. Do you take that margin as a message from Democratic voters, considering you had name ID and a significant fundraising edge on your side?
- [13:46]
John Hickenlooper
Well, there's always more work to be done. And I look at right now, the key, I mean, people are looking at what divides Democrats. As I said last night, I'm focused on what unites Democrats and what we are united is that we're going to take back the Senate, we're going to take back the House. We're united that we're going to hold this president accountable for all that, all that they've done to harm this country, make sure we stop them before they can destroy this country. I mean, that's what unites us.
- [14:13]
Melanie Zanona
I mean, in your victory speech last night, as you mentioned, you emphasized Democrats united. But we have seen some really deep divides between progressives and moderates in the party. Senator, do you welcome the rise of the democratic socialist movement within the party?
- [14:29]
John Hickenlooper
Listen, I've since I first got into politics, I've always been about a bigger tent and looking at how do we get more people focusing on what really matters. And, you know, I want to run with people that want to restore health care to the millions of people who have lost it since Donald Trump came into office. I want to run with people that are going to create a better opportunity for working people to get paid more and to have lower costs to their lives. You know, we've got a cost of living emergency that's going on that's directly the result of Donald Trump, where at the end of the month, many, many working people are having a hard time figuring out. Am I going to be able to make my payment for my health care insurance? Can I pay my rent? How am I going to get through to the next month? That's nonsense. We're the wealthiest country in the world. And I think a big tent where we welcome everybody who wants to make sure people get their health care back, make sure that there are good, well paying jobs available. That's, that's what's going to unite us.
- [15:24]
Melanie Zanona
Do you think the leadership should do a better job of embracing these DSA candidates?
- [15:30]
John Hickenlooper
I think we all have to embrace this bigger tent. We have to recognize that we're going to disagree on sometimes very key issues that we care about. But our focus has to be on winning the House and winning the Senate and ultimately in 2028, taking back the White House. And to do that, we need the big tent. We need to unite around those things that really matter. And we have to have a program out there that shows. Here's how we're going to get to universal coverage, right? We may disagree on which pathway we're going to get, but most of us, most everybody in the Democratic Party wants universal health care coverage. And I think that's the kind of thing that's going to allow us to take back power in this country and restore some of the, of the things we used to take for granted before it's completely destroyed by the, by the Trump administration.
- [16:18]
Melanie Zanona
Well, Senator, let's talk about what happens if Democrats do retake the Senate this fall. You told the Denver Post earlier this month that you don't think Senator Schumer wants to continue as party leader. What gives you that impression?
- [16:32]
John Hickenlooper
Well, I haven't talked to him in a good while, but certainly he was getting beat up day in and day out. Nobody likes that. I can't imagine a harder job, the, you know, to manage either caucus, but especially the Democratic caucus where you have so many people with so many viewpoints that are so strongly held, and yet somehow the leader has to maintain that big tent. So I have no inside information. I'm not saying he's not going to run. I just, I wouldn't blame him if he got frustrated by the, you know, the relentless attacks. I mean, he's got to be on top of the fundraising and building that bigger tent 24 hours a day.
- [17:13]
Melanie Zanona
If he's taking such a beating, do you want to see him run for leader again?
- [17:19]
John Hickenlooper
I'm not going to tell you. The one thing you learn, at least I've learned, is I don't try and tell anybody in politics you know, they should do this or should do that.
- [17:28]
Melanie Zanona
Would you support him if he, would you support him if he did run?
- [17:33]
John Hickenlooper
Well, let's see where we get there. I think he's done in so many ways. He's, I mean, as a fundraiser, as someone who's put his life on hold while he works for the benefit of this country, I think he's brought, he brings a lot to the table.
- [17:47]
Melanie Zanona
So not necessarily a yes, not a no, you're waiting to see?
- [17:52]
John Hickenlooper
Well, I have been supporting him. I will, I am continuing to support, let's put it that way.
- [17:57]
Melanie Zanona
Senator, let's turn to the other major story facing your state this week. Several wildfires are burning, including the Snyder fire, which has killed three firefighters. Has Colorado gotten what it needs from the federal government to contain these fires?
- [18:12]
John Hickenlooper
Yeah, so far. I mean, I went out there on, on Sunday, or actually, I guess on Monday, and we got, we went to the, what they call the incident command center and got a briefing from the, all the head of the federal firefighting team. And I was, I was totally, I was satisfied, let's put it that way, that they're doing the best they can and that they've got adequate resources. I mean, right now, there are nine wildfires in Colorado. They're more than that in Utah. I mean, there's a huge pressure on our resources, and we're already beginning to see some shortages in terms of various aspects of firefighting. So as this summer goes on and we're, you know, looking at a wildfire season in Idaho and Montana in the Pacific Northwest, it is not, not foolish to imagine that we're going to run out or run short of supplies. And certainly when the Trump administration decided they wanted to reorganize their approach to firefighting before what we knew because of the drought that this was going to be one of the worst wildfire seasons in a long, long time. So far, I think they're, they're doing a good job, but I am certainly concerned that an awful lot of people are in new jobs and there's new regions and people trying to figure things out on the fly. That's not, I mean, generally, that's not the way I've tried to do things when you're dealing with really potentially devastating situations.
- [19:46]
Melanie Zanona
Senator John Hickenlooper, thank you.
- [19:50]
John Hickenlooper
Thank you.
- [19:51]
Melanie Zanona
Coming up, more on last night's election results in Colorado, the direction of the Democratic Party and why Michigan's August primaries just got more interesting. But first, cash. Again, we're taking you inside President Trump's newly released financial disclosures showing he made billions of dollars last year while president as the White House denies concerns that some of the First Family's entanglements pose a conflict of interest. You're watching Meet the Press now.
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Ed Conway
How does a banana trigger a CIA backed coup? Do AirPods herald the arrival of a new global order? What do LED lights say about the future of humanity? I'm Ed Conway and in each episode of my new podcast, Stuff Matters, I take an object, crack it open and reveal the world shaping forces hidden inside. This is economics told through the things things we think we understand. Search Stuff Matters on your podcast app to listen and follow.
- [21:46]
Melanie Zanona
Welcome back. President Trump is defending the billions of dollars of income he reported earning as president in 2025, according to Legally mandated financial disclosures released late yesterday. President Trump enjoyed a windfall of at least $2.2 billion last year. That includes more than $1.4 billion from crypto ventures. The president speaking to reporters today denying any direct involvement in his finances.
- [22:12]
Donald Trump
Get involved in my personal we have funds that run my money.
- [22:16]
Melanie Zanona
But you are benefiting from your money.
- [22:18]
Donald Trump
Well, I've made a lot of money before I became president and they invest my money and I don't talk to them. I never, I don't even speak to them. So I have many people, I don't know what they call closed accounts or something. You put your money in and that's it. I don't talk to them. They're big institutions and they run it. I think it's called the blind account, but they basically they take it and I purposely, I never speak to any of the people that run the money. But they're at big institutions and they invest in whatever they invest.
- [22:47]
Melanie Zanona
The President making those comments this morning before taking his first flight on the new Air Force One, which was a gift from Qatar, as he traveled to North Dakota. And you were looking at live pictures of the president in North Dakota as he continues to deliver remarks at the opening of the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library. NBC News chief Justice and national affairs correspondent Kelly o' Donnell joins me now from the White House. Also with me is NBC News business and data correspondent Brian Chung. Kelly, let me start with you at the White House. What is the White House saying about the president's earnings from cryptocurrency and concerns about a potential conflict of interest, especially given his power over that industry?
- [23:27]
Kelly O'Donnell
Well, good afternoon, Melanie. And the the president's team is saying that he and his family are not engaged in anything that would be a conflict of interest. They put that out in a direct statement. What they do not do is go through and explain some of the policy intersections between things that the administration oversees and regulates and some of the holdings of the Trump family. The president's correct. He was a wealthy man before he came to office. But this legally required financial disclosure shows that during the time of his second term, 2025, this was the enormous increase of funds to the president's portfolio. And it does involve crypto, something that for a long time he spoke out against, obviously from a real estate background, a hospitality hotel and Mar a Lago club owner. Crypto is a different part of the financial sector, and he and his family, his sons, have benefited greatly. There have also been other business practices where the Trump family has invested overseas at a time when the president, of course, is the head of the government. So they are saying there is nothing to see here. At the same time, there are a lot of questions to be explored about how the president has benefited financially and how the government may or may not respond to industries and potential for profit where he has directed influence and the government that he runs has regulatory control. So that's where these questions come out. When he refers to a blind account, he might be referring to a blind trust. But from what we see of the president's holdings, there are many things that have made him very wealthy that are not index typed funds or broad kinds of financial investments. They're specific things that, again, have that business implication with respect to the government and regulation.
- [25:14]
Melanie Zanona
And Kelly, I also mentioned that today was the maiden voyage for the new Air Force One, which was a gift from Qatar. What is the president saying about the plane?
- [25:23]
Kelly O'Donnell
Well, the president is very proud of this plane and he talks about it as a gift from Qatar. And it was about $400 million in its actual value. Then when the US government took it over, there had to be an enormous retrofit for security reasons to make certain that there weren't any concerns about national concern, national security. There have been many of those raised. Obviously a new paint design ending the paint color scheme that went back to the 1960s selected by Jacqueline Kennedy. And so the President says this is a good value. However, the President is going to use this plane for only a couple of years. And then there will be the already ordered Boeing members of the presidential fleet. Here's how the President discussed this earlier today.
- [26:09]
Donald Trump
Very little relative to what it would cost if we did it a different way. So this was a gift from a country that's treated us very well and they're an ally of us over in the Middle East, Qatar. And I went to Boeing, I said, who has the best one? They said, Qatar. There's no, there's never been a plane like it, frankly. We couldn't build a plane like this because we wouldn't be willing to spend the kind of money necessary. They spent top dollars.
- [26:40]
Kelly O'Donnell
That raises questions because Boeing is an American company and is responsible for the presidential fleet of aircraft and is in fact providing the next set of new generation Air Force One. That's a designation. The aircraft are the VC aircraft that are used by the President. And by extension, any time he's on board, it's called Air Force One. So unsure what the President means about Qatar having a better version of a Boeing made aircraft. Melanie.
- [27:08]
Melanie Zanona
Kelly o', Donnell, thank you. Let's turn now to Brian. Brian, break down what we learned about President Trump's earnings from last year.
- [27:16]
Brian Chung
Yeah, Melanie, there's a lot to break down in part because that was such a large disclosure that we got, as you mentioned, that is something that he has to do. 927 pages. That's how large this disclosure document was, including about $2.2 billion of his earnings over the 2025. That was more than double what the president reported in 2024, which was over 600 million. And I should tell you that 927 pages. Compare that to Vice President J.D. vance's forum, which was only 17 pages. Now, when we of course, take a look at what's inside of this. Kelly was just teasing the crypto ventures that the President was a part of contributing to over $1.4 billion in this report. That explains why it was so big. I should also quickly point out there was 86.5 million in lawsuit settlements that included settlements with ABC, CBS as well as some tech companies like YouTube and Meta as well. Now, the President did say that those lawsuit settlements were paid to the Trump Presidential Library Foundation. So an important point there. Here's a comparison. I think when people talk about President Trump, they talk a lot about his branded golf courses, his real estate ventures. When you take a look at Mar A Lago and Trump National Doral, the income from those properties was minuscule compared to the crypto ventures and that are now being reported on these forms. Take a Look at this. $636 million in meme coin sales. That was the meme coin known as dollar Sign Trump, as well as World Liberty financial at almost $800 million, almost $1 billion alone. If we zoom in on those crypto ventures, you could see, first off, it's only a drop in the bucket. The sale of the equity in World Liberty Financial. This is the decentralized financial service that the President's sons had launched. Crypto wallets associated with that particular venture. World netted $290 million, $236 million from the sale of World Liberty Financial tokens themselves. But then the biggest one, $635 million in something called Celebration Coins. This is a little bit more mysterious. This appears to be linked to something having to do with the Trump Meme Coin. But the actual mechanics of how that Celebration Coins title came from is something that's going to have to be investigated a little bit further. I should also point out there was an interesting report from the Wall Street Journal a few months ago that suggested the UAE was a big contributing factor to the World Liberty financials. So, of course, all of this is going to warrant a lot of further investigation, as you can imagine, with almost a 1000 page document, but a lot of the President's income massively coming from these crypto ventures.
- [29:42]
Melanie Zanona
Now, yeah, fascinating breakdown and kudos to our graphics team there. You mentioned that Trump made hundreds of millions of dollars from his Meme Coin. But Ryan, what about his supporters who actually bought the Meme Coin?
- [29:53]
Brian Chung
Yeah, it's a jarring split screen because as the President reported, almost, almost a billion dollars in this income from these types of crypto ventures. You did see the Trump meme coin. You don't even really need to look that hard at this chart. You could see just how steeply this has fallen since it debuted. At one point, these meme coins were worth over $10. Currently, it's worth less than about $2. And so for that reason, anyone that invested, these retail investors that maybe thought this was going to pop and then drop well, if you held onto it, you were likely a loser. So as the president made over $1 billion in his broad crypto ventures, those that were engaged in the Trump meme coin and hoping to hold on to it likely did not come out on top.
- [30:33]
Melanie Zanona
Brian Chung, excellent reporting. Thank you. Up next, money, money, money. We'll dive deeper into Trump's financial disclosures with the panel, including how it will affect GOP midterm messaging as affordability issues loom large in the midterms. You're watching Meet.
- [30:52]
Podcast Promo Voice
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- [31:20]
Joy Bauer
July means you're halfway through the year, but there's still time to reach your 2026 wellness goals, with half off an annual subscription to the Start Today app. Hi everyone. I'm Joy Bauer, the Today Show's nutrition expert. And as part of the Start Today family, we offer easy to follow meal and fitness plans. And we support you with simple, realistic tools that keep you inspired to reach your goals. Go to today.comstart and download now because it's never too late to Start Today.
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- [32:02]
Laura Jarrett
Who gets to be a citizen of the United States at birth? When it comes to sports in school? Who gets to compete with the girls? And how much power does the president actually have to hire and fire at independent agencies? These are some of the key questions before the U.S. supreme Court this term. And as any good lawyer knows, whether you win or lose in the highest court depends on the facts, the evidence and how you frame your arguments. But that's not the only thing that matters. I'm Laura Jarrett, senior legal correspondent at NBC News. And this month in a new series for our here's the Scoop podcast, I'm talking to legal experts and lawyers whose past legal victories are now the building blocks for the biggest cases still left to be decided. I want to know how they convinced the court they were right when the stakes were high, what special sauce locked it in, and what could be different this time around? Join us for here's the scoop, Supreme Court Edition, new episodes every Saturday. You can find here's the Scoop from NBC News on YouTube and wherever you get your podcasts.
- [33:08]
Donald Trump
Well, you know why I'm profiting? Because the stock market's going up. Everybody's profiting. If you have, you have a 401k, how's your 401k done? It's about up 85%. Thank you, President Trump. So we're all profiting. I'm profiting because I have a lot of money and a lot of cash. And we, I give it to institutions. I don't know if they know what they're doing or not, but they buy a vast array of things.
- [33:35]
Melanie Zanona
Welcome back. That was President Trump dismissing speculation that he has a conflict of interest after disclosing more than $2.2 billion in earnings last year, including more than 1.4 billion in crypto income. Joining me now is the panel, Francesca Chambers, White House correspondent for USA Today Megan Hayes, former special assistant to President Biden, and T.W. origi, Republican strategist and vice president of Push Digital Group. Thank you all so much for joining us. There's lot to dig into, but I do want to start with one of the big stories today, Trump's finances. Francesca, do you think Democrats are going to try to make President Trump's finances a big part of their midterm messaging? And do you think they're going to vow to at least investigate it if they do take back the majority?
- [34:18]
Francesca Chambers
Well, I think that affordability has been the biggest argument for Democrats so far this cycle, and it will continue to be right. When you ask Americans in polls what they believe the most important issues are, it's inflation, it's the economy, it's housing. Right. It's all of those things. That being said, of course, Democrats are also having this intraparty conversation right now about how best to take on President Donald Trump, with many in the party saying that they want, you know, a fighter, someone who's really gonna come in there and stick it to the president. And of course, Democrats are also saying that, you know, if they take back Congress, they're gonna have robust investigations of the president and members of his administration.
- [34:54]
Melanie Zanona
Yeah. And this could be a way to sort of thread the needle between fighting against Trump but also focusing on affordability. Tw, though, do you think it is any risk or liability for Republicans at all, given what Francesco is saying about this affordability message that Trump has accumulated so much wealth since he became president again?
- [35:12]
Craig Melvin
Well, Donald Trump is the most wealthy person entered the presidency since George Washington. That obviously worked a little differently back then. And a lot of money begets a lot of different financial interests. Look, Donald Trump ran on draining the swamp and he ran against the corruption perceived from the Biden administration. These stories create a big problem for Republicans trying to work against that narrative that put them in office in the first place. Look, the executive branch is handled differently than a lot of other parts of our government. The president is exempt from the conflict of interest rules. He doesn't have an outside income limit, so he's not breaking the law. But when World Liberty Financial has ties to the Emiratis, when Steve Wyckoff's son is bouncing around doing business deals, that gives the appearance to the American people of a bad bargain. And that needs to be sorted out because Republicans don't want to be answering that question on the trail.
- [36:08]
Melanie Zanona
Do you think it will be sorted out?
- [36:10]
Craig Melvin
Who knows?
- [36:11]
Melanie Zanona
Well, Megan, at the same time, is there any sort of risk for Democrats here in trying to talk about investigations and impeachment too much in the midterms?
- [36:22]
Megan Hayes
Well, I think that the messaging that they should take is that Donald Trump is getting rich while you are not and you are making less money and he is costing you money by going to war and not not focusing on the cost of affordability of groceries and gas and housing. But he seems to be able to line his own pocket. So he is focused on that. And that's where I think Democrats should take their messaging. I also would caution Democrats, it is great to hold people accountable. It is great to have investigations. It's great to do all of those things when you are in power. But the American people want you there to lower their costs. So I would focus first and foremost on that. And then the investigations piece should be second.
- [36:52]
Melanie Zanona
NTW the New York Post had an editorial op ed today that said said Hunter Biden style sleaze is just as slimy when the Trump boys do it. We have a quote there from the op ed. But do you think the president should be concerned that the usually friendly New York Post is critical of his family like this a bit?
- [37:09]
Craig Melvin
I don't think it's just the New York Post either. I think there's a lot of Republicans, especially on Capitol Hill that I talk to who are saying all the time, man, I wish we weren't talking about this. I wish this wasn't the case. But the American people look at this broadly speaking and they think the same thing they thought when they put Donald Trump in the first time in 2016 and again, in 2024, which is Washington is full of a lot of people getting rich while they're struggling. You see Nancy Pelosi making a ton of money in the House through what is perceived as insider trading, and Congress won't step in and pass legislation to stop it. There has been no legislation to the executive branch to stop them, and I don't see that coming down the pike anymore. I think it's really important to say Donald Trump has a lot of very complicated financial dealings. He has a ton of money. That always happens with people of significant wealth. He is not breaking the law. It is just the appearance of it. And the American people are struggling, and he has a lot of wins to tout, and he's not doing enough touting the wins he has.
- [38:05]
Melanie Zanona
Yeah. And, Francesca, I mean, Trump said yesterday that it's a big yawn when referring to the housing legislation, the bipartisan legislation that he has yet to sign. I mean, how much of a problem is that for Trump, that kind of language?
- [38:18]
Francesca Chambers
Well, I don't know, actually, that he is going to sign the legislation. I interviewed House Speaker Mike Johnson on Monday evening, and he told me that the president hadn't committed to signing that piece of legislation yet. He said he was going to come back and continue to work on him. I don't know yet if he got him to a yes on it, but it's most likely going to become law because he said, by the way, that President Trump wasn't going to veto it. So it'll just essentially become law without his signature. So law. Look, Republicans are trying to run on that piece of legislation. It's a difficulty for them when you have not necessarily just the president saying that it's a big yawn, so to speak, when you have him fighting them on that and then saying, look, I'm not gonna sign this unless you guys push the SAVE act, which they've tried to pass in the House multiple times, as you know. But in the Senate, it's run into trouble.
- [39:04]
Sahil Kapoor
Right.
- [39:04]
Francesca Chambers
They've been at odds over what that midterm strategy should be with President Trump, I think, thinking that he has a really good pulse on the American people through his rallies. And. And I think that you see legislators on Capitol Hill, though, who are in some of those tight races who are saying, I need something to run on.
- [39:20]
Melanie Zanona
Yeah, they were really looking forward to being able to run on that housing bill. Megan, I want to turn to the Colorado results from last night. You know, it was somewhat of a mixed bag for progressives, but do you think this is going to be seen as proof of momentum for the progressive wing or the limitations of the movement outside of really liberal pockets like Denver, New York City.
- [39:39]
Megan Hayes
I think a lot of this is anti incumbency. Right. A lot of these people who have lost have been incumbents and people are just tired of Washington. To your earlier point, it's happening on both the Republican side and the Democratic side. I think we have to remember this isn't even 1% of the total House that makes up the House of of Representatives in Congress. So I just think that we have to be careful to over crank. Clearly there is a movement here, but these are turning blue districts bluer. These are not people who are going to help Democrats win back the majority. So I just think that I would caution folks not to over crank on what this actually means. I think that people are tired of having people who've been in office longer than they've been alive.
- [40:13]
Melanie Zanona
And President Trump did respond to these wins today, slamming these candidates as communists. Let's take a listen to some of that sound.
- [40:20]
Donald Trump
The biggest threat to our country, including World War I, World War II, Pearl Harbor, September 11th. I think it's a bigger threat, potentially a bigger threat than that because it's like a cancer that spreads and you better stop it fast. We will never let the United States become a communist country.
- [40:39]
Sahil Kapoor
Country won't happen.
- [40:45]
Melanie Zanona
TW how are Republicans viewing the results last night? And do you think this could be something that could actually work to their advantage in November?
- [40:52]
Craig Melvin
Massively so, because we saw it in the Republican Party in 2010. We were like, well, these people are with us on tax cuts and balancing the budget. We're going to forget all the nutty stuff they say they get into. They win their primaries and all the crazy stuff they've said is held over the head of the party. And we lost several seats that we should have won in a big wave election. I think it's more insidious now because it goes into anti Semitism. The person who won last night in Colorado, she said 911 was brought on by ourselves, that we brought it on ourselves. She said the same about October 7th. And I find it rich that this is actually coming when he's at Theodore Roosevelt's library. Theodore Roosevelt, who coined the term progressivism, came up with progressivism as an antidote to socialism and communism because he believed it was the most corrosive ideology that could grip America. And so I think Donald Trump is right insofar as this ideology is a massive threat. I don't know if it's as much as 9, 11 or something like that. But I would say it is a big threat and it's going to be hung over their heads. People don't want to abolish prisons or the police. People don't want to get rid of our borders. People think it's hideous to say that there's a, that Hamas has a point in October 7, so it will work in our favor.
- [42:02]
Melanie Zanona
Megan, do you think that that communist label is dangerous for Democrats, especially in swing district?
- [42:07]
Megan Hayes
I don't think it's in swing districts because the people who are running in those swing districts are not communists. They have said, they have not said things like abolish ICE and abolish prison.
- [42:14]
Melanie Zanona
Yeah, but Republicans are gonna try to tie all of them 100%.
- [42:16]
Megan Hayes
But when people are out there, I mean, Democrats have overperformed 90% of elections or one or over performed 90% of elections since 2024. That means that people who are running are right for their communities and people in the communities are voting for them. So that's exactly what's happening here. People who want in New York, that's what their communities want. Whether I agree because I 100% do not agree with their sentiments, that is on the people of those communities. Moderates are going to win and Democrats are going to take back the House because that's what their communities want.
- [42:42]
Melanie Zanona
And Francesca, as we noted, progressives not won statewide yet. How big of a deal is this Michigan primary going to be in August?
- [42:49]
Francesca Chambers
I mean, look, I absolutely think that all of these primaries and what we're, you know, what we're seeing portends a potential not just wave in Congress, depending on what happens in the general election, I might add. These are, you know, these are primaries so far. So we'll see what happens in November, but it definitely will define what kind of Democrats, if Democrats, what kind of caucus that they actually have next year. I mean, it could be very tight for Hakeem Jeffries. Right.
- [43:14]
Melanie Zanona
He could be dealing with another, I
- [43:15]
Francesca Chambers
was going to say with another Mike Johnson like situation. You know, he's trying to, to keep some of these people in line who, you know, didn't align with him and he didn't back in the first place in the primaries next year. So certainly all of these things will be really important for next year.
- [43:30]
Melanie Zanona
And Meghan, what do you think about Michigan primary? Because we're seeing a similar battle playing out right now.
- [43:34]
Megan Hayes
Yeah, I think that Haley, Steven, I mean one of the Mallory needs to drop out. Haley Stevens will become can win the primary with a lot of her votes. I think that she's the most moderate candidate. I think we forget how old the electorate is in Michigan and that there are progressives there, but it's not widespread. Haley has a huge amount of support from the black community and other communities in Michigan. So I just, I think Michigan's a lot more moderate than people are giving it credit for.
- [43:57]
Melanie Zanona
We're gonna have to leave the conversation there. But Megan, TW And Francesca, thank you so much. After the break from the trading floor to the House floor, inside the push to ban top officials in all three branches of the U.S. government from trading stocks and betting on prediction markets. A pair of bipartisan lawmakers that are behind that effort. Join me in studio for the latest installment of our Common Ground series. That interview is next on MEET THE press. Now. Welcome back. As we mentioned, President Trump is defending making billions of dollars while in office after yesterday's release of his financial disclosures. The president telling reporters his investment decisions are made by outside parties and he's only profiting because the stock market is up. Although we should note that most of his new wealth is tied to crypto investments. It comes as a bipartisan duo of lawmakers has introduced new legislation aimed at curbing senior officials in all three branches of government, including the president, from trading stocks and betting in prediction markets, arguing that public service should not be an investment strategy. Joining me now are those two lawmakers, part of our Common Ground series. Behind that legislation, Congresswoman Maggie Goodlander of New Hampshire and Republican Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania. Thank you both so much for joining us. We always love when we can get people together on both sides of the aisle. But I want to start with this bill. Talk to me about how you decided to team up on this issue, what this legislation would actually would do, and who is actually all covered by it.
- [45:28]
Congresswoman Maggie Goodlander
Yeah. Well, I'm happy to kick it off. I love working with Brian. We saw, I think, a real gap and a real problem. There are many ways that we need to tackle corruption in our government. But I think to us, one of the first things we can do is to clarify the rules of the road for senior officials serving in all three branches of government. Right now, the president, the vice president, members of Congress, justices of the Supreme Court can trade stocks, they can bet on prediction markets. So that means they can sit in a briefing in the morning and trade on that information in the afternoon. And it really undermines the basic trust that the American people have put in senior officials in our government. And so our bill is a first of its Kind bill that clearly puts a prohibition on trading stocks and on participating in prediction markets. And it covers all three branches of government. Because this is not just a problem isolated to the executive branch, although it is an urgent problem there. It's a problem in Congress and it's a problem in our courts, too.
- [46:34]
Melanie Zanona
And Congresswoman, it was revealed today or yesterday in the financial disclosures from President Trump that he made thousands of individual stock trades. He also made billions since he's become president. What was your reaction to that, especially given this legislation that you're bringing forward?
- [46:47]
Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick
Yeah, I mean, this is Exhibit A of why we need this legislation. There is a huge void of trust between the public and the institutions. And that's one of the reasons why this legislation is so important. And there have been multiple efforts. Melanie, we started off, you know, way back in the beginning of the Congress, we had a very interesting coalition, myself, Chip, Roy and aoc so we covered the entire continuum of Congress. We were focused on our own backyard, just dealing with House ethics and insider trading. With regard to Congress itself, there was then a move to add in the executive branch. And Maggie, which I think is a brilliant idea, and I second it is, why not include all three branches of government? Because the premise is if you have access to inside information by virtue of your government position, you should be forbidden and precluded from trading on any stock market, including prediction markets. Now, it's going to have to evolve. We're going to have to be flexible because there's all these different types of currencies and all these different markets. So we were just talking even in the back room, how can we make this a living and breathing type definition that will always encapsulate all these new emerging forms of currency?
- [47:52]
Melanie Zanona
Does it make it harder to get bipartisan support or even Republican support by including all of these branches of government, including the President himself?
- [47:59]
Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick
I mean, it should be easy, you know, if you come to Congress wanting to serve the people and you understand that there is a gap in trust, which there is. If you don't believe that, you're living on another planet. And it's our job to try to bridge that gap, to restore that trust. And exhibit A, the first place we need to start is by making sure members of Congress are not using their information that they are learning in committee hearings, that Supreme Court justices aren't learning what they know because they know how they're going to run things. And members of the executive branch, the president, the vice president, special government employees, members of the Cabinet, they all have access to information they know what is going to happen and what is not going to happen well in advance of the public. So given that truism, given that fact, there has to be consequences in terms of their, you know, our desire to make sure they cannot trade off of that information.
- [48:47]
Melanie Zanona
And Congressman, I mentioned how the President said it was third party investors who made all these decisions. He had no input in this. Would the President's investment manager still be allowed to make these types of stock trades under your bill?
- [48:59]
Congresswoman Maggie Goodlander
Individual stock trades are prohibited under our bill. You know, we've put in exceptions where it's crystal clear that there is not the possibility of a conflict of interest. But this is a clear rule because what we see are individual trades that are being made by people who are moving the markets themselves. And that is, that's what is undermining public trust so profoundly at a moment when people are feeling the pain of this affordability crisis. You know, I represent people who are working two to three jobs right now and still getting crushed by the basic cost of living. And to look and see a President profiteering billions of dollars in part based on decisions he's making as Commander in Chief is, is outrageous and it's got to stop.
- [49:45]
Melanie Zanona
Well, one thing not covered in this bill is the crypto earnings. Is that something, Congressman, you think should be addressed in any way and you have any concerns about potential conflicts of interest there?
- [49:53]
Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick
Yes, it should be included. In fact, Maggie and I were just talking about it. Hence, we need to make this a living and breathing definition. So what we did, and Maggie did a great job with this, is we key off of Title 5, Section 13, 101, which deals with who is required to submit financial disclosures because there's already a direct nexus between that population of people and their access to sensitive inside information. But yes, we need to come up with a solution for crypto, and Maggie included prediction markets. We have to encapsulate all of that. That's why we need to make sure that this is a living and breathing concept. The whole point is if you have currency, no matter what the form is, and you are using inside information to trade on that, it's got to be.
- [50:33]
Melanie Zanona
And you know, there is already a law called the Stock act that exists. There's been lawmakers who have violated been slapped with penalties before, but no one's ever been prosecuted. So what is different about your legislation? And are you confident that Congress actually has the ability to police itself?
- [50:49]
Congresswoman Maggie Goodlander
Well, the penalties that have been slapped on are really slaps on the wrist and they haven't created a basic deterrence from this kind of behavior. You know, transparency is the first step. But what our bill really does is bring accountability here, clear penalties. Not only do you return all of the ill gotten gains, you pay a penalty for breaking this, this rule, which is a clear ban on individual stock trading and participation in prediction markets. And I think the clarity of the rule and the severity of the penalties are two really important pieces of making this work.
- [51:27]
Melanie Zanona
And Congressman, have there been any conversations with the White House about potential buy in for this legislation? Because Trump has in this past expressed at least some support for the idea of a ban on stock.
- [51:37]
Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick
Yeah, not on this piece of legislation. I mean, there have been conversations in the past on other pieces of legislation. Not this one. This is all encompassing. But you know, we represent a separate and co equal branch of government. We have to do our job and that's what we're going to do here.
- [51:51]
Melanie Zanona
Republicans have really investigated Hunter Biden's business deals overseas. Do you think there's an oversight role for Congress to investigate the Trump family?
- [51:59]
Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick
Of course. We are the oversight branch of government. We, the executive branch of government does not have a dime in its own right. Right. Every dime that the executive branch has needs to be authorized and appropriated by Congress. And yes, we also serve as an oversight role. That's the brilliance of the system of government our founders set up. Our job is to oversee, once we appropriate and fund and authorize that, we oversee how they go about deploying those resources.
- [52:23]
Melanie Zanona
And Congresswoman, if Democrats take back the majority, do you think that's something that will be prioritized investigations into Trump's finances?
- [52:30]
Congresswoman Maggie Goodlander
Look, I think this goes to the heart of the trust problem that we have in this country. We need transparency, we need daylight, we need accountability above all. And our bill, we should add, does cover the family members of senior officials in the executive branch and, and then my members of members of Congress because this, we're seeing this problem beyond the officials themselves. And we see that in the case of the President's family.
- [52:57]
Melanie Zanona
And just on the broader topic of bipartisanship, you guys passed a housing affordability bill. Trump has yet to sign it. He canceled the bill signing ceremony. Are you concerned that the president is standing in the way of bipartisanship given what he did with the housing bill?
- [53:11]
Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick
Well, that bill will become law, you know, whether it gets signed or, you know, the 10 day period expires. I wish you he wasn't doing this. I think it should have been signed immediately. It should have been signed that day. This is, you know, you had 85% of House members that voted supported this bill, and over 90% of the senators that voted that day voted in favor of this bill. You can't get those numbers to agree. The sky's blue in this climate. Everybody was on board with this. And it will become law. It will help the American people. I wish it was signed quicker, though, for sure.
- [53:40]
Melanie Zanona
And Congresswoman, do you think Democrats are still incentivized to reach across the aisle given what happened with the housing boom?
- [53:46]
Congresswoman Maggie Goodlander
Look, we've got the narrowest margin in a generation right now. The way to actually get things done is to work together. And that's why from day one, I've tried to find and create the common ground that we need. And the housing bill is a great example. And it will become law and we will continue to work in every way we possibly can.
- [54:04]
Melanie Zanona
We got to leave the conversation there. Congressman, Congresswoman, thank you so much for joining us. We really appreciate it. We're back tomorrow with more MEET THE PRESS now. And there's more ahead on NBC News. Now,
- [54:26]
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