President Donald Trump's family appears to have grown richer since he entered the White House. The wealth is coming in because Trump, unlike past presidents, handed control of his businesses over to his children instead of fully divesting from them. The president's daughter, Ivanka Trump, and son-in-law, Jared Kushner, have similarly stepped down as bosses of their companies but maintained a hand in them.
Here are ways the first family has gained since Donald Trump took office:
Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner are tens of millions richer
The couple may serve as unpaid senior White House advisers, but they made at least $82 million from their own businesses last year, financial disclosure forms released Monday showed.
Ivanka Trump made $5 million from her namesake clothing company, as well as $3.9 million from her share in the Trump International Hotel near the Capitol, more than $2 million in Trump Organization severance, and a $289,000 advance for her Women Who Work book, according to analysis of the disclosure forms by The Washington Post and Politico.
Meanwhile, Kushner earned at least $70 million from his shares in his family-owned real-estate company Kushner Cos., including $5 million from a New Jersey apartment building it acquired last year.
Ivanka Trump's assets last year came in at an estimated $55.3 million to $75.6 million, and Kushner's between $179 million and $735 million, according to the Post. They have complied with ethics laws, Peter Mirijanian, a spokesman for the couple's attorney Abbe Lowell, told the Post.
"Their net worth remains largely the same, with changes reflecting more the way the form requires disclosure than any substantial difference in assets or liabilities," Mirijanian added.
Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump made at least $82 million in outside income last year while serving in the White House, filings show https://t.co/G6WMIXgZjr
— Amy Brittain (@AmyJBrittain) June 12, 2018
Trump Organization run by the president's sons "profitable"
The Trump Organization's golf courses drew in $221 million in revenue in 2017, the president's latest financial disclosure form showed. The total revenue for the prior year was not disclosed and the president's second oldest son, Eric Trump, would not reveal the figure.
Eric Trump claimed all the golf courses earned more and are "profitable."
"It's a big bet, but it's paid off. We bought well, at good prices and the best locations," he said, according to CBS News, and added that the Doral course in Miami "is on fire" and brought in $75 million last year.
The Donald
Despite his claims of high net worth, Trump did not make the latest Bloomberg Billionaires Index of the 500 richest people in the world. His net worth has taken a $100 million dip to $2.8 billion in the last year, based on his May 16 financial disclosure form, information from lenders, property records and annual reports.
But Trump Organization spokeswoman Amanda Miller contested Bloomberg's methodology in estimating the worth of Trump's buildings in Manhattan. She said borough-wide data waters down their value and that "the location of a property affects the rents it can achieve."
While it is difficult to determine exactly how much the Trumps have raked in from outside the White House, they certainly haven't taken a huge loss from being in the public eye on an international stage.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
A Los Angeles native, Jessica Kwong grew up speaking Spanish, Cantonese and English, in that order. Her journalism career started ... Read more
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