Trump's Crypto Earnings, Democratic Socialists Rising, USA Advances In World Cup

0:02President Trump and his family made more than a billion dollars last year, much of it from crypto.

0:06Ayesha Rascoe:His enormous earnings are raising a lot of questions about possible conflicts of interest. The White House says there's nothing wrong with it. I'm A. Martinez. That is Michelle Martin. And this is a first from NPR News. Democratic socialists are gaining momentum after primary wins in New York and Colorado. Republicans are betting they can paint the whole party as too extreme, which could be a challenge for Democrats. eyeing midterm races, can they tap into that democratic socialist energy without the label? And the U.S. men are through to the World Cup's round of 16. They beat Bosnia-Herzegovina, although they had to play a man down for their first knockout win in 24 years.

0:43Ayesha Rascoe:But their top scorer is suspended for the next game. Stay with us. We'll give you news you need to start your day.

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2:00Ayesha Rascoe:President Trump's financial disclosures show that the president and his family took in more than$1 billion through cryptocurrency sales and other business ventures. The report released this week shows the crypto earnings sharply outpaced Trump's real estate businesses, which had already made the president a wealthy man. They also raised questions about possible conflicts of interest. NPR's Linda Kenyon is with us this morning. Welcome, Linda. Glad to have you with us. Thank you. Good morning. Now that we've had some time to dig into this 927-page financial disclosure document, what exactly are we learning about the crypto earnings for the president and his family?

2:34Well, we're learning a lot. The 2025 report, which was filed with the Office of Government Ethics, shows the cryptocurrency venture World Liberty Financial, which was co-founded by Trump and his family members, took in more than$500 million. In addition, the sale of Trump's souvenir-type meme coins took in more than$600 million. The official version of those meme coins with Trump's face stamped on it was launched just days before he took his second term inauguration. Other income included more than$50 million from settlements with media companies, millions from selling Trump-branded Bibles, sneakers, watches.

3:10Those watches with the Trump imprint brought in more than$4.7 million all by themselves. And that's all separate from the president's overseas real estate ventures, many of them with countries that have been negotiating with the U.S. on tariffs and military aid and several other issues. What's the White House saying? Well, the White House has released a statement that denies any conflict of interest. Spokesperson Anna Kelly said, quote, neither the president nor his family has ever engaged or will ever engage in conflicts of interest. She also applauds the president for making the U.S., as she put it, the crypto capital of the world through executive actions.

3:48President Trump himself also answered reporters who asked about his earnings when he was leaving for the Dakotas yesterday at Joint Base Andrews. We have funds that run my money. But you are benefiting. 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 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. That's not unlike the response that White House Press Secretary Caroline Leavitt gave when she was asked about Trump's meeting with top investors in his meme coin, a meeting that took place in May of 2025.

4:28The president is abiding by all conflict of interest laws that are applicable to the president. And I think everybody, the American public, believe it's absurd for anyone to insinuate that this president is profiting off of the presidency. Trump on Wednesday said he's also earning more because the stock market is doing well, saying everybody is profiting.

4:49Ayesha Rascoe:So the White House and the president deny any conflict or abuse of the office. Linda, I have to note that even some of the president's traditional supporters, some of the podcasters, for example, are raising questions about this. But what about other people? Are there other critics of this? Yes, absolutely. Democrats have a lot to say. For example, California Senator Adam Schiff suggested the president has made more money in the first year of his term, then in the rest of his life combined. And Congressman Jason Crow called the president's crypto earnings another example of what he termed grift and corruption.

5:18The Colorado Democrat also pointed out that Trump on Wednesday was taking his first flight on a brand new Air Force One, a gift from a foreign government, Qatar, valued at more than$400 million and will stay in the Trump realm when he leaves office. The White House says the aircraft will be a donation to Trump's presidential library. That's Enfiras, Linda Kenyon. Linda, thank you. Thank you.

5:49Ayesha Rascoe:Democratic socialists have scored some high-profile victories over the last few days. And in the view of many Republicans, that should be a warning sign for voters. Here's President Trump on Wednesday. We're not going to let communists get in our way. We're not going to let anyone get in our way. Not the communists. For Democrats, these kinds of attacks come as no surprise, but they still pose a challenge for the party as they look ahead to this year's midterms and a path back to the majority in Congress. NPR political reporter Elena Moore has been keeping an eye on all this and is with us now.

6:16Ayesha Rascoe:Good morning, Elena. Good morning, Michelle. So we saw Democratic Socialists win big victories in New York City last week and then again this week in Denver. How are they doing it? Well, it's a mix of things. Democrats have struggled to coalesce around a clear post-2024 message. But many of these successful campaigns endorsed by the Democratic Socialists of America, or DSA, do have a core message, one that's centered around economic populism and rejecting the political status quo. They're also not shying away from more polarizing issues like abolishing ICE and an end to U.S. military aid in Israel.

6:51And taken together, it's a platform that appears to be energizing people, at least in these super blue areas. What did that look like in Denver? To back up real quick, the DSA is not a registered political party. It's a membership group. So that's why these candidates are running in the Democratic Party primary. And that's what Maylat Kuros did in Denver. She's a 29-year-old first-time candidate who unseated longtime Democrat Diana DeGette. And make no mistake, DeGette is seen as a progressive on Capitol Hill. But she's also been there since 1997, the year Kuros was born. So Kiros campaigned as an anti-establishment candidate, calling for a new type of politics.

7:31And like many leftist candidates this year, she tried to differentiate herself by vocally rejecting money from corporate PACs and pro-Israel lobbying groups and criticizing her opponent for taking those same kinds of donations in the past.

7:44Ayesha Rascoe:Can you talk about the drawbacks that some other Democrats see in these DSA victories? Well, several of these candidates are going from activist to politician, and skeptics are wasting no time highlighting at least one of these candidates' past comments disparaging Democrats. Some Democrats are hesitant to associate with DSA, saying it could complicate their message and toss up races where control of Congress will ultimately be decided. Matt Bennett, with the centrist think tank Third Way, argued that Republicans will paint any Democrat as a Democratic Socialist in hopes that it will make them seem too extreme.

8:20Of course it's possible to run as a left-leaning populist without adopting the maximalism of the extremes. But it is very hard for Democrats now to distinguish themselves.

8:33Ayesha Rascoe:What did the Democratic Socialists say to that? Well, I talked to Claire Valdez about it. She's one of two candidates for Congress who won in New York last week. She argues this is not a radical movement. We're seeing it not just in New York City, but really around the country, that there's broad consensus around the need to recenter working class Americans and our politics and really fight to make sure that the Democratic Party is leading on these issues. So with all that said, what's the calculus for Democrats as they look ahead to November? Well, candidates who don't want to be associated with DSA are going to try to strike a balance, tapping into some of that same messaging without the DSA label.

9:11And that's not going to stop the GOP from framing people as extreme. But given how frustrated folks are with politics right now, I'll be watching to see if voters are more willing to look past those kind of attacks.

9:21Ayesha Rascoe:That's NPR's Elena Moore. Elena, thank you. Thanks, Michelle.

9:32Ayesha Rascoe:OK, now a 2-0 win may not sound like much of a nail-biter, but last night in the FIFA World Cup, the U.S. men's national team looked like it might be on the ropes before pulling out a win against Bosnia-Herzegovina. It's the first time in almost a quarter century that the United States has won a game in the World Cup knockout stage. NPR sports correspondent Becky Sullivan was there. Hopefully she's gotten her heart rate back down. Now she's joining us on the line from San Jose, California. Good morning, Becky. Good morning, Michelle. I mean, what a game. How big of a win is this? Unbelievable.

10:04Yeah, I mean, this was a wild ride. It's a huge win, Michelle, because, I mean, just being there, the U.S. had to work and work and work to get that first goal to go up 1-0 just before halftime. And then there's striker, Falarin Balagan, who is the newest big star of this team, made this disastrous mistake in the second half. He got his legs tangled up with a Bosnian defender. He stepped on the defender's ankle. It went to a video review, and it was deemed a red card, meaning he was out for the game, of course. And the U.S. was forced to play down a man for the remainder of the games, which was like 25 minutes plus stoppage time.

10:37And I don't think any fan in the stadium was confident at all in that point in a U.S. win. Bosnian was, of course, only down one. Anything could have happened. And they pulled it off for the biggest win for the U.S. men's national team in a good long time.

10:50Ayesha Rascoe:Okay, so tell us about the win. And there was this hero moment in the second half when the U.S. went up 2-0. Tell us about it. Yeah, exactly. Yeah, so they were playing shorthanded. They're down a guy. But this yellow card on a Bosnian defender gave the U.S. this golden opportunity, a free kick from near the top of the penalty area, and up steps midfielder Malik Tillman. He couldn't have hit a prettier shot just right over the wall of defenders and into the net. He is just one of the best, most skilled players on the team, and yet he is also just one of the quietest, most understated, one of the most soft-spoken people I think I've ever met.

11:22Sometimes you even struggle to hear him when he's just speaking to a small crowd of us reporters. And here is how he put it after the game. I'm a different type of person on the pitch. Of course, maybe you don't really see my emotions, but if you score a goal like this, I mean, I think also you guys saw my emotions. And it's a great feeling and, of course, a very proud moment for me. Yes, you can hear how quiet he is there. He was born in Germany. His mom is German. His dad was in the American Armed Forces. He's American. And so Malik is just one of these dual nationals. The U.S., of course, is very happy to have on the team right now.

11:57Because when you can score a shorthanded goal like that, Michelle, there is nothing that takes the wind out of the sails faster for an opponent in a game like that. OK, but this red card, right? Yes, it is a big deal. Yeah, unfortunately, it's a big deal because Balagan has become a huge centerpiece of this team in the World Cup so far. He has played three games. He had three goals, which is already tied for the second most all time by any American man in a single World Cup. He's not the type of guy who picks up a lot of yellow and red cards. This is his first ever red card for the national team.

12:26So sitting out is going to be a big deal. Here is his teammate Christian Pulisic after the game. It's just disappointing. I understand it's a dangerous act in a way, but he's just trying to put his foot on the ground. It wasn't high on his leg. It's just so unfortunate. You can just really hear the disappointment in his voice. I mean, Pulisic is exactly the guy, by the way, who benefits from Balogun being on the field. Because Balogun is good, it takes away some of the pressure from Pulisic, who has long been the biggest star of the U.S. men's national team. Now, the opponent next week, Belgium, will get to focus more of that attention on Christian Pulisic.

12:59Ayesha Rascoe:So for people who don't know the game that well yet, that means that Balogun is out for the next match, which is against Belgium. So what else are we going to see there? Yeah, you know, it's hard to know. So, you know, Belgium has been a team with some real ups and downs this year on one hand. You had Belgium and the U.S. playing in a friendly back in March. Belgium won that one really easily, actually. It was 5-2, kind of a big blowout win. But on the other hand, they've looked like one of the most beatable, quote-unquote, good teams in this tournament so far in this World Cup. So I think it's a difficult one to predict.

13:28The U.S. certainly has a chance even without Balagan. And a win, Michel, would bring the Americans to the quarterfinals, which would match the deepest run they've ever had in a modern World Cup.

13:37Ayesha Rascoe:That is. And here's Becky Sullivan. Becky, thank you. You're welcome.

13:45Ayesha Rascoe:And that's Up First for Thursday, July 2nd. I'm Michelle Martin. And I'm Martinez. Today's episode of Up First was edited by Jan Johnson, Russell Lewis, Jason Breslow, Alice Wolfley, and Mohamed Elvardisi. It was produced by Zia Butch and Nia Dumas. Our director is Christopher Thomas. We get engineering support from Stacey Abbott. Our technical director is Zach Coleman. And our deputy executive producer is Kelly Dickens. Join us again tomorrow.

14:14Thank you.

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