Being rich has never done Donald Trump any harm with his base. If anything, it’s done the opposite. Trump doesn’t look elitist, snooty or out of touch to the Maga crowd. Instead, he’s aspirational: they see an entrepreneur who got rich as the result of his own business savvy – a living embodiment of the American dream.
That image relies, however, on Trump’s supporters believing that the President is also making it easier for them to get rich, too. Some might hope to become multimillionaires or billionaires in their own rights, but many more would settle for a few more dollars in their pocket at the end of the working week.
Poll after poll have shown that millions of people voted for Trump because they thought he would be better for the US economy, and that he would do more than Kamala Harris and the Democrats to tackle their cost of living.
Shorts
Scroll to previous short
Scroll to next short
An artist’s impression image issued by HS2 of the Sheephouse Wood bat protection structure (Photo: HS2/PA Wire)
news
How the £100bn HS2 railway line descended into farce
The much-vaunted project is set to be delivered seven years late, vastly over budget and covering a shorter distance than initially planned.
Now it looks like it’s going to run at lower speeds as well.
Here The i Paper looks at just some of what has gone wrong.
What’s gone wrong so far?
Caption: Aerial views of an embankment in a Staffordshire field where the HS2 tracks will come to a very abrupt end.
Photographer: William Lailey / SWNS
Provider: William Lailey / SWNS
Source: William Lailey / SWNS
A £100m shed for bats — measures to mitigate environmental concerns have proved expensive.
The line that ends in a field —2km of track north of Birmingham will be unused when the line opens.
Empty homes bought for cancelled leg — £3.7bn was spent on these.
Explained
5 min read
Low speeds and no track laid
The latest report on HS2 given to Parliament in March 2026 reveals that the total amount spent on the programme to date is £46.2bn. No usable railway tracks have yet been laid.
A revised final cost is expected to be revealed by the end of this year, with some reports claiming it is likely to go beyond £100bn (Photo: Daniel Leal/AFP)
(Photo: Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)
HS2 trains were originally supposed to travel at speeds of up to 360kph, making it one of the fastest railways in the world. Chief executive Mark Wild was instructed to look at whether reducing the speed of trains on the line would save money. It is expected he will suggest that HS2 can be reduced to a maximum speed of 320kph.
NEWS
How instant AI answers can trivialise human intelligence
Caption: Overhead shot of businesswoman using AN AI chatbot virtual assistance app on smartphone to assist her while working on laptop. Using AI technology at work. Online robot system. Concept of VR and AR technologies. People, AI, innovation and technology
Photographer: d3sign
Provider: Getty Images
Source: Moment RF
A leading scientific researcher has warned against over-reliance on AI, saying it could limit people’s capacity to question and learn.
Using smart tools to solve complex problems risks losing the ability to do it ourselves, they warned.
Director warns against ‘complete dependance’
A reliance solely on instant answers risks losing the habits of questioning and evaluation that underpin knowledge, expertise and innovation
PADDY RODGERS, DIRECTOR OF ROYAL MUSEUMS GREENWICH
Greenwich Park (Photo: AP Photo/Joanna Chan)
Royal Observatory launches project to promote human intelligence
One of the country’s oldest scientific institutions, the Royal Observatory is known for advancing the science of astronomy worldwide.
Their new project, First Light, aims to “seize on the passion of all the astronomers over the last 350 years, and interpret that passion through science”, Rodgers told the BBC.
Caption: The Victorian buildings of the Royal Observatory in Braid Hill at dusk with the moon in the sky during a warm winter evening, a man taking a picture at the stunning sunset pink light over the north of Edinburgh.
Photographer: Daniele Carotenuto Photography
Provider: Getty Images
Source: Moment Unreleased RF
LIFESTYLE
4 min read
Watch next from The i Paper
Gail’s chicken ceasar club sandwich has the same amount of salt as five McDonalds cheeseburgers, according to campaign group Action on Salt and Sugar. The group analysed 546 supermarket and chain lunch options, including sandwiches, baguettes and wraps. According to them, 44% of the products surveyed would contain a high salt warning under front-of-pack guidelines. Other high-salt products include Gail’s smoked salmon bagel (4.2g), Paul’s rosette cheese salami gherkin (4.19g) and Pret’s ham and greve baguette (3.85g). #gails #gailsbakery
♬ original sound – The i Paper – The i Paper
Escaped tiger shot by German police after attacking man
The animal belonged to Germany’s ‘Tiger Queen’ and is said to have seriously injured one of its keepers. Animal rights campaigners have called for government action.
Caption: In this photograph taken on January 23, 2015, German trainer Carmen Zander (R) poses with a tiger during the International Circus Festival in Massy. The City of Paris pledged on December 13, 2017, to become a city without wild animals in circuses, without deadline and by sending back to the State the responsibility of a prohibition, a unanimous decision qualified as “small step forward” by the ecologists. (Photo by BERTRAND GUAY / AFP) (Photo by BERTRAND GUAY/AFP via Getty Images)
Photographer: BERTRAND GUAY
Provider: AFP via Getty Images
Source: AFP
Man injured in privately owned enclosure, police say
A 72-year-old man was injured by a tiger near Leipzig yesterday, prompting police to shoot the escaped animal to prevent further risk to the public.
The man was one of the tiger’s keepers and it appears to have run out of its enclosure after attacking him.
Caption: Carmen Zander performs with a tiger during the gala of the 42nd Monte-Carlo International Circus Festival in Monaco on January 23, 2018. / AFP PHOTO / POOL / Claude Paris (Photo credit should read CLAUDE PARIS/AFP via Getty Images)
Photographer: CLAUDE PARIS
Provider: AFP via Getty Images
Source: AFP
TRAVEL
4 min read
Who is the ‘Tiger Queen’?
The tiger is believed to have belonged to Carmen Zander, the self-styled “Tiger Queen” of Germany who performs circus acts with her exotic pets. Her animal enclosures are open to the public, who can pay to come and pet the tigers.
Animal rights charity Peta has called on the government to impose stricter rules to protect privately-owned animals.
Caption: Carmen Zander performs with a tiger during the gala of the 42nd Monte-Carlo International Circus Festival in Monaco on January 23, 2018. / AFP PHOTO / POOL / Claude Paris (Photo credit should read CLAUDE PARIS/AFP via Getty Images)
Photographer: CLAUDE PARIS
Provider: AFP via Getty Images
Source: AFP
Caption: Carmen Zander performs with a tiger during the gala of the 42nd Monte-Carlo International Circus Festival in Monaco on January 23, 2018. / AFP PHOTO / POOL / Claude Paris (Photo credit should read CLAUDE PARIS/AFP via Getty Images)
Photographer: CLAUDE PARIS
Provider: AFP via Getty Images
Source: AFP
POLITICS
Reform has declared a crackdown on asylum and HMOs – what they can actually do
Caption: ROMFORD, ENGLAND – MAY 08: Reform UK leader Nigel Farage speaks with media outside Havering Town Hall following the 2026 local election results on May 08, 2026 in Romford, England. Voters went to the polls yesterday in the local elections across England. Results counted overnight show widespread losses for the Labour Party. Several key Labour councils have surrendered their majority as Reform UK and the Liberal Democrats make significant gains. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)
Photographer: Dan Kitwood
Provider: Getty Images
Source: Getty Images Europe
Copyright: 2026 Getty Images
Nigel Farage’s party has vowed a crackdown on migrant accommodation after taking control of several councils in the local elections.
But data suggests the effect of its council policies could be limited — here’s our analysis of what the impact could be.
Crackdown on asylum hotels
Reform has pledged that asylum seekers will not be accommodated in the 14 areas where they run the councils. These are Havering, Barnsley, Calderdale, Gateshead, Sandwell, South Tyneside, St Helens, Sunderland, Wakefield and Thurrock.
They also promised to deport 288,000 “illegal migrants” in the election campaign, though it is unclear who exactly they mean.
Caption: The former Patio Hotel in Aberdeen, now being used to house asylum seekers (Photo: The i Paper)
Big Read
5 min read
How many asylum seekers are there in the UK right now?
Asylum seekers make up 12 per cent of immigrants
107,003
The number of asylum seekers currently being supported by the Government.
3,835
The number of asylum seekers in Glasgow, the city with most in the UK.
0.59%
The proportion of Glasgow’s population made up of asylum seekers.
POLITICS
4 min read
What can Reform councils actually do?
Caption: 27/04/26 – Chorley , Lancashire – Story by Steve Robson on HMO s – Houses in Multiple Occupancy in and around Chorley in Lancashire and the potential impacts of this on the upcoming local elections. Pictures of housing on Bentham Street in Coppull, Chorley where there are some HMOs . ( NOTE : might not identify the exact houses due to neighbours concerns – no portraits of the couple interviewed because of identity concerns )
Photographer: Steve Morgan
Copyright: Steve Morgan
Labour has already committed to closing all asylum hotels by 2029.
Farage says this means migrants will be moved to Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs).
Councils grant HMO licences, so Reform has vowed to tighten up on handing these out.
Big Read
4 min read
Go deeper on Reform councils
Reform UK councillors are already dropping like flies just days after the party’s major local election gains. Multiple newly elected councillors have resigned or been suspended over alleged racist, extremist and offensive social media posts, raising questions about vetting inside Reform UK. So how did Reform’s election victory descend into chaos so quickly? #Reform #Council #UKPolitics
♬ original sound – The i Paper – The i Paper
Woman awaking after sleeping well in a nice sleeping room. – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
SLEEP
How to reset your sleep
Irregular sleep has been linked with poorer cardiovascular health, metabolic disruption, inflammation and mood imbalances.
If your sleep has fallen out of whack, this is what the experts recommend.
From personalised ‘sleep windows’ to unhelpful bedtime routines.
Consistency in bedtimes
It helps the brain feel safer and more predictable around sleep, which is important for people with insomnia. When sleep and wake times are consistent, that clock stays well aligned. When sleep timing is all over the place, the body clock becomes confused…
dr ZOE GOTTS, CONSULTANT CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGIST AT THE LONDON SLEEP CENTRE
Couple sleeping in bed – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
The changes to make
Sleep tourism in hotel. Exhausted woman sleeps sweetly in bed in the morning – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
Find your sleep window
When do you naturally start to feel tired? Aim to allow your body to sleep within that timeframe most nights.
Wake at the same time
Pick a wake-up time you can stick to and anchor everything around that, says Dr David Garley, sleep expert.
Sleep doesn’t have to be so complicated (Photo: Olga Pankova/Getty)
Caption: TOPSHOT – NASA’s Artemis II Space Launch System (SLS) rocket is seen at sunrise at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida on April 1, 2026. On Wednesday three men and one woman are set to embark on the first crewed journey to the Moon since 1972, a landmark odyssey that aims to launch the US into a new era of space exploration. The NASA mission dubbed Artemis 2 has been years in the making after facing repeated setbacks, but is finally scheduled to take off from Florida as early as April 1 at 6:24 pm (2224 GMT). (Photo by Gregg Newton / AFP via Getty Images)
Photographer: GREGG NEWTON
Provider: AFP via Getty Images
Source: AFP
Copyright: AFP or licensors
Get out into sunlight
Exposing yourself to daylight soon after waking helps to sync your circadian rhythm, says Dr Garley.
How to reset your sleep
Regulate your nervous system
Many people are running on exhaustion but still in a state of high alert, so might not be able to rest when needed, says Dr Gotts.
Gentle routines, reduced evening stimulation, and calming the body can make a huge difference.
Sleep tourism in hotel. Exhausted woman sleeps sweetly in bed in the morning – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
Senior bed woman problem pain headache home elderly mature pain bedroom upset unhappy female caucasian adult relationship retirement old difficulty ache head sick migraine hangover sleep – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
Don’t spend too long in bed
If you cannot sleep within 20 minutes, get out of bed, ideally out of the bedroom, and find a relaxing and distracting activity to do while you wait for the natural urge to return.
The tweaks to make to reset sleep
(Photo: AzmanL/Getty/E+)
Look at your bedtime
Don’t presume earlier to bed (ie. more time in bed) equals better sleep. The timing needs to fit you.
It might mean going to bed later
Set an alarm to anchor the wake-up time, then choose a bedtime that allows you to fall asleep easily and aim to sleep solidly within that time.
Woman in bed at night having trouble sleeping. – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
A mature woman lies in bed and reads a hardback book – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
Don’t overdo it
Too much preparation can increase pressure around sleep so a short and consistent routine is far more effective.
Weight training has a host of benefits, but only if it’s done correctly.
We asked personal trainers the common mistakes that people make when lifting – especially for the first time or early on in their strength journey – and how to avoid them.
Woman lifting barbell with heavy weights in cross training gym – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
Priotising weight over form
When the load is too heavy, form usually breaks down, the wrong muscles take over, and the risk of injury goes up. If you can’t control the lowering part of the movement, keep good posture, or move through the full range, you’re compromising.
CELEBRITY TRAINER AND PT AIMEE LONG
The mistakes you could be making
Close up of male athlete gripping heavy green kettlebell during strength training exercise in cross training gym – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
Not progressing
If you’re reaching for the same pair of dumbbells each week you’re likely just maintaining muscle, not building.
The wrong trainers
You need adequate support for your ankles, without overly cushioning your arches.
Find the best shoes for you (Photo: Xavier Lorenzo/Getty/Moment RF)
Woman at the Gym – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
Not timing your rest
PT Nancy Best’s advice is to take 90 seconds of downtime before picking your weight back up.
Research has found that strength training can help slow bone loss
(Photo: FJ Jimenez/Moment RF
via Getty)
Neglecting recovery
Progress does not happen during the workout itself; it happens afterwards when your body repairs and rebuilds.
Poor sleep, not eating enough calories or protein, or training the same muscles hard every single day can hinder recovery and leave you constantly exhausted, says Long.
Not choosing the right exercises
An effective programme is built around variety.
Ensure your training includes each movement for the upper and lower body.
PT Luke Worthington recommends a push/pull programming.
Upper body push targets the shoulders or chest and upper body pull typically works the back.
Lower body push includes squats and leg press whereas pulls include deadlifts and hinges.
What to do
Perfect the movements before increasing the weight.
Best recommends Nike Metcons or Converse for a flat, stable surface.
Aim to eat 1.4-2g of protein per kilogram of bodyweight if you’re regularly exercising.
When you’re comfortable you can increase the weight, number of sets or reps, or range of motion to progress each lift.
LIFESTYLE
6 min read
The eight biggest mistakes we make
when retiring
Psychologist and author Dr Denise Taylor says we shouldn’t sleepwalk into retirement, nor stop walking, just because everyone else has.
Denise Taylor’s marriage ended at 60 as the structure of the working day faded away (Photo: Mihai Zsigmond)
The mistakes we make when retiring
The man is currently drawing a small defined benefit (DB) pension (Photo: SimpleImages/Getty)
Hoarding money
Many clients tell me their biggest regret was spending too little when they were healthiest and most able to enjoy it.
Planning to rest
Boredom in retirement is misunderstood. It’s rarely about having nothing to do. It’s about having time without meaning.
Naps before 1pm can lead to better cognitive performance in the following hours (Photo: Lord Henri Voton/Getty Images)
Photographer: Lourdes Balduque
Provider: Getty Images
Source: Moment RF
Copyright: Lourdes Balduque
Not mentally preparing
People prepare financially and practically, but don’t do the psychological work of leaving well.
Waiting to plan what’s next
Once the structure of work disappears, people can slip into a narrower way of being. Start sketching out possible paths at least two years ahead. Even rough ideas about what you might want to explore – creative projects, volunteering, learning.
DR DENISE TAYLOR
Denise Taylor has worked with many clients who moved into ‘purposeful’ roles expecting to feel better, only to be more depleted than before
(Photo: Ilona Gierach)
Common mistakes she sees
‘I know it’s a minor thing but it makes me feel unheard and ignored’ (Photo: PonyWang/Getty)
Not preparing as a couple
Discuss how much time you want together, and what kind of lives you’re moving towards, rather than assuming it will naturally align.
Trying to stay busy
Without noticing what drains your energy, activity becomes a way of bypassing the deeper adjustment.
Remember to care for your lawn (Photo: RHS / Tim Sandall)
Senior bed woman problem pain headache home elderly mature pain bedroom upset unhappy female caucasian adult relationship retirement old difficulty ache head sick migraine hangover sleep – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
Treating it as an ending
People can find themselves psychologically stranded. Days begin to blur into one another.
Retiring because everyone else is
For a generation raised to expect retirement at a certain age, default timing can feel normal.
The timing is personal.
Portrait of senior man at desktop computer in home office – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
The mistake is retiring without questioning whether that timing actually fits your own life. It ignores your relationship with work, your health and your finances.
Agony Uncle
5 min read
What to do
1For some a gradual shift is best like working fewer days or changing role, slowing down.
2Experiment before you leave. Taking a sabbatical or reducing hours can show you how retirement might feel.
3Prioritise a small number of meaningful anchors: one regular commitment, one place where you feel known and one activity.
4Slow it down psychologically – question default timing, resist expectations and ask yourself what kind of transition you are actually stepping into.
Sir David Attenborough is estimated to have travelled almost two million miles in his career, and has visited 90 countries and all seven continents in his quest to enhance our understanding of nature (Photo: Shirlaine Forrest/WireImage)
SIR DAVID ATTENBOROUGH
The national treasure has celebrated his centenary
For all the inspiring insight into nature that Sir David Attenborough has given us, he has also shown us how to age well.
Here, Chief Features Writer Kasia Delgado looks into his lifestyle, and the tips he’s shared to live to 100.
Caption: Programme Name: Africa – TX: n/a – Episode: The Future (No. 6) – Embargoed for publication until: n/a – Picture Shows: SIR DAVID ATTENBOROUGH WITH A THREE MONTH OLD BLIND BLACK RHINO ??? LEWA WILDLIFE CONSERVANCY, KENYA – (C) BBC/David Chancellor – Photographer: David Chancellor
Photographer: David Chancellor
Provider: BBC/David Chancellor
Source: 6
Copyright: WARNING: Use of this copyright image is subject to the terms of use of BBC Pictures’ Digital Picture Service (BBC Pictures) as set out at www.bbcpictures.co.uk. In particular, this image may only be published by a registered User of BBC Pictures for editorial use for the purpose of publicising the relevant BBC programme, personnel or activity during the Publicity Period which ends three review weeks following the date of transmission and provided the BBC and the copyright holder in the caption are credited. For any other purpose whatsoever, including advertising and commercial, prior written approval from the copyright holder will be required.
LOREM IPSUM
Never retiring fully
Putting your feet up is all very well, but it’s very boring, isn’t it?
In the last two years alone, Attenborough has done voiceovers on a number of projects, including Wild London, and a National Geographic Disney film, Ocean.
Although his workload has remained high, he did acknowledge in 2017, that as he ages, he sometimes finds it harder to recall correct words as quickly as he did before.
Improving his diet
In his 90s, Attenborough has cut back on red meat, and begun eating an increasingly vegetarian diet.
Whether as he said, he “simply lost the taste” for meat, or whether it was an environmental or health reason, the NHS advises that eating a lot of red and processed meat increases your bowel cancer risk at any age.
Caption: Fox Cub BBC Wild London 2026 Attenborough Screenshot
Big Read
7 min read
Keeping active
Caption: Sir David Attenborough visits the London Wetland Centre in west London where he launched his new campaign to raise public awareness to help reverse the butterfly decline, urging the public to plant butterfly-friendly flowers in their garden to help reverse declining numbers of the insects.
Photographer: Stefan Rousseau
Provider: PA
Source: PA Archive
Attenborough has previously said he has “never done exercise” in an official capacity.
But he has kept active by going for walks in Richmond, where he lives.
Interviewers who have been to his home have also mentioned him practically skipping down the stairs of his house.
TELEVISION
8 min read
Avoiding becoming isolated
When Sir David’s wife Jane died in 1997, the couple’s adult daughter Susan moved in with her father. He said at the time: “I’m quite used to solitude in the wilds but, no, an empty house is not what I enjoy.”
Caption: TELEVISION PROGRAMMES: THE QUEENS GREEN PLANET
Monday 16th April 2018 on ITV
Sir David Attenborough joins Her Majesty the Queen in the gardens of Buckingham Palace
This unique, landmark documentary follows Her Majesty the Queen and an ambitious legacy project to create a global network of protected forests, spanning the 52 countries of the Commonwealth.
This project, called the Queen’s Commonwealth Canopy, brings together Her Majesty’s deeply held commitment to the Commonwealth and her little-known love of trees.
At the heart of the film is a conversation between the Queen and Sir David Attenborough filmed in the gardens of Buckingham Palace last summer. In a rare opportunity to see the Queen talking informally to Sir David, the conversation ranges from climate change, to conkers and birthday gifts.
The film follows members of the Royal Family involved so far in making the Queen?s Commonwealth Canopy a reality, including Prince Harry planting trees in the Caribbean, and Prince William and his family in Canada’s Great Bear Rainforest.
(c) ITN Productions
For further information please contact Peter Gray
0207 157 3046 peter.gray@itv.com
This photograph is ? ITV and can only be reproduced for editorial purposes directly in connection with the programme THE QUEENS GREEN PLANET or ITV. Once made available by the ITV Picture Desk, this photograph can be reproduced once only up until the Transmission date and no reproduction fee will be charged. Any subsequent usage may incur a fee. This photograph must not be syndicated to any other publication or website, or permanently archived, without the express written permission of ITV Picture Desk. Full Terms and conditions are available on the website www.itvpictures.com
Provider: From ITN Productions
Copyright: ITV
Sir David Attenborough during the event marking his 100th birthday today at the Royal Albert Hall (Photo: BBC Studios Natural History Unit/Buckingham Palace)
He’s also been known to respond personally to fan letters and maintain relationships with people who admire him. He has no iPhone or email address and instead prefers to communicate by handwritten letter.
Appreciating small things
It seems to me that the natural world is the greatest source of excitement; the greatest source of visual beauty; the greatest source of intellectual interest. It is the greatest source of so much in life that makes life worth living
Caption: Veteran broadcaster and naturalist Sir David Attenborough with an Australian bearded dragon after receiving an honorary degree from Queen’s University in Belfast for exceptional services to science and broadcasting.
Photographer: Paul Faith
Provider: PA
Source: PA Archive
Thanks in part to somewhat rose-tinted recollections of Trump’s first term, they thought a billionaire president would be better for their own bottom line. So far, that’s spectacularly failed to materialise.
Inflation in the US is soaring, in large part as a direct consequence of Trump’s disastrous war on Iran. That’s already showing up in prices at the pump – something Americans are very sensitive about – but will only get worse in months to come as the cost of food and other essentials spikes. Trump is not delivering on his half of the deal.
Against that backdrop, Trump’s personal wealth could rapidly shift from serving as a political asset to a liability, especially if it looks like the President is enriching himself at the voters’ expense. That’s why the President’s latest financial disclosures, released last week, could come at a bad time for Trump, just six months before crucial midterm elections.
Trump’s opponents have been aware of his self-enrichment and questionable dealing for years, but as it gets more blatant, even his own supporters may find it impossible to overlook.
Details within the disclosures, which showed thousands of transactions in the first quarter of the year alone, are hard to ignore. Trump has bought millions of dollars in tech stocks, including Oracle, Nvidia and Meta – all companies his administration has made deals with or changed regulations to seemingly help. He has bought stock in data analytics company Palantir, even as the Department of Defence gave it massive contracts.
Most blatantly, Trump’s disclosures show he bought millions of dollars worth of Boeing stock in the weeks before his state visit to Beijing last week, where he announced a deal to sell 200 Boeing planes to China.
The US public is well-aware that some congressional representatives – who, like the President, are effectively immune to the insider-trading rules that govern other Americans – have got rich by trading stocks of companies they regulate. They hate that.
For Maga, this was part of draining the swamp, which Trump repeatedly promised to do in his first term.
Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law, meets Vladimir Putin in Moscow earlier this year. He has reportedly been doing private deals alongside his role as the President’s unofficial peace envoy the whole time (Photo: Alexander Kazakov/Sputnik/Reuters)
But the sense of grift around the Trump presidency is now closing in ever closer to the President himself.
Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law, holds no formal role in the administration but has been serving as the President’s unofficial envoy in the Middle East – while doing private deals alongside it the whole time. Trump’s family businesses have been investing in crypto businesses and other enterprises, making use of the President’s name and brand.
And there are wide suspicions – backed up by reporting on trading patterns – that those in the President’s orbit are using advanced knowledge of his announcements to place bets on prediction markets.
Trump is vanishingly unlikely to face any kind of legal consequence for his own business dealings, even if they were found to be in violation of any US laws. The Supreme Court granted the president near-total immunity from regular prosecution, while impeachment needs a two-thirds majority of the Senate to pass, which is next-to-impossible in practical terms.
But the court of public opinion is a different matter., especially at a time when Trump is looking increasingly disconnected from regular voters.
Affordability is the number one issue for most Americans, but Trump seems woefully detached from that. He routinely complains about how difficult it is to build his $400m (£298m) White House ballroom.
Last week, when asked by a reporter if he felt pressured by the economic situation many Americans are experiencing to reach a deal with Iran to end the war, Trump gave a startling answer. “Not even a little bit,” he said. “I don’t think about Americans’ financial situation.”
Even if true, this is not something you’re supposed to admit as an elected official.
US voters have shown time and again that they are happy to turn a blind eye to Trump’s wealth and controversies, so long as he delivered for them. Increasingly, he’s failed to do that even as his own efforts at self-enrichment become ever-more blatant.
With the midterms just months away, Trump could soon find that their patience has run out.