Daniel Wolfram
Accusations of corruption are starting to emerge after a new report shows that the White House really wanted to provide a company with a huge loan from the Pentagon.
The independent publication ProPublica, which does investigative journalism, published a piece of reporting back in May that the Pentagon had approved a $620 million loan to a startup that has ties to one of the president’s sons.
It turns out the story goes deeper than that.
Someone in the White House directed the Pentagon to lend that money to the previously unknown company. The son of Donald Trump purchased a stake just months before the loan became a reality.
Company with ties to Junior
The White House insisted for months that a massive deal between the Pentagon and a small North Carolina tech firm was above board and that there was nothing suspicious about it.
The company named Vulcan Elements had ties to the president’s son, Donald Trump Jr., but aides staunchly claimed no laws were being broken and this deal was above board.
However, new evidence paints a very different picture. Defense Department records reviewed by ProPublica and an investigation into the ordeal reveal that the Counselor to the President of the United States, Peter Navarro, personally requested a $620 million loan for the startup, named Vulcan Elements.
Out of dozens of companies seeking funding from the military, Vulcan Elements was the only firm being pushed to get a deal done by a top presidential adviser.
Donald Trump Jr. invests in Vulcan
The loan is ultimately taxpayer-backed and has delivered a massive economic boost to the rare-earth magnet manufacturer. The rare-earth magnet company was launched just two years ago, but Vulcan’s overall market value has increased tenfold after the loan was approved.
The timing of the loan was also perfect for Donald Trump Jr. His venture capital firm had quietly bought a stake in Vulcan Elements around three months before the Pentagon was told to give the money to the company.
A Pentagon insider who asked to remain anonymous noted that staff received direct orders from high-level officials. “The call came from the White House: We have to get this done,” the source said.
The publication’s source also revealed that the White House requested that the Pentagon and its staff rush this deal through in just a couple of weeks.
‘Trump Speed’
White House officials defended the loan and the process. A spokesperson stressed that the Trump administration is only interested in looking out for the good of the American public.
“The President’s entire team, including Senior Counselor Navarro and officials at the Department of War, is working together and with private industry to secure America’s critical mineral supply chain at Trump Speed,” the spokesperson added.
Representatives for Trump Jr. and his investment firm insist that they have no power in deciding which company gets loans from the Pentagon and that they did not discuss this deal with Peter Navarro.
But as ProPublica reports, the relationship between the younger Trump and Navarro seems to be very close according to Donald Trump Jr.’s talk show Triggered.
Peter Navarro is also infamous for serving a prison sentence in 2024 after being found in contempt of Congress during the investigation into the US Capitol attack in 2021.
Is this legal?
A Pentagon spokesperson also claims the same thing, stating that “outside affiliations, investors, or political connections play absolutely no role in the Department’s funding decisions.”
Still, ethics experts and Democrats are alarmed by the White House taking an active role in deciding whom the Pentagon loans its funding to.
Former George Bush administration chief ethics lawyer Richard Painter argues that the White House should not get to decide who receives the money and where it goes, especially when taxpayers are funding a deal that will ultimately benefit the president’s family.
“This is our money they’re spending,” Painter said. “This is corruption we pay for.”
