From Washington to Simaisma
Corruption in the Trump administration extends far beyond the United States
40 minutes north of Doha, the capital of Qatar, sits the small beach town of Simaisma. Long before Simaisma became a tourist attraction, it was a sparsely populated settlement made up of mosques and old houses. Today, it’s considered prime real estate, with its incredible views of the Persian Gulf, and acres of undeveloped coastline.
The government of Qatar has envisioned a complete redevelopment of this entire area, labeled the “Simaisma Project.”1 Eternally obsessed with developing coastal real estate, Donald Trump, by way of his family business, has secured an agreement with the Qatari government to work with two large developers (one from Saudi Arabia, and one owned by the Qatari government) to build an 18-hole golf course, and Trump-branded beachside villas, within the redeveloped area.2
In addition to the Trump-branded beachside villas, and 18-hole championship golf course, the plan involves building a “Land of Legends” theme park, within this sprawling entertainment distract. The price tag for all of this? An estimated $5 billion.3 According to The Peninsula Qatar, the benefits are enormous:
"The Trump-branded enclave will be a key highlight within the Simaisma project, reinforcing Qatar’s position as a global hub for luxury, tourism, and investment."4
The Trump brand isn’t stopping there. They’ve also been granted approval to build a “Trump International Hotel and Tower” in Dubai.
In Eric Trump’s tweet, you can see that “DarGlobal” was tagged in the photos. That is one of the developers that the Trump family will be working with in both Qatar, and Dubai. With assets valued at $8.6 billion, DarGlobal has properties across the Middle East. The Trump company is also developing a golf course and hotel in Oman, and another Trump Tower in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, adding to its portfolio of properties in the region.
Let’s not be naive here. Trump is using his power and influence, as President of the United States, to ensure that his family’s business is able to secure foreign real estate deals. But it doesn’t stop at real estate. Trump’s family, and friends, are getting absurdly wealthy from cryptocurrencies.
The ruling family of the United Arab Emirates agreed to a $2 billion injection into the “$Trump” stablecoin, headed up by Zach Witkoff (son of Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff) and Eric Trump, who are the co-founders of the crypto firm, “World Liberty Financial.” According to an investigation by The New York Times, World Liberty Financial is "eviscerating the boundary between private enterprise and government policy in a manner without precedent in modern American history."5
These issues have been reported on extensively, so I won’t go any further into them here. But there is something new regarding Trump and Qatar.
Trump is being gifted a Boeing 747-8 jumbo jet, also referred to as a “flying palace” by the Qatari government, to replace Air Force One. Aviation experts estimate the value of this plane to be around $400 million, and that’s before it gets the full upgrades required to be used as Air Force One.
As for the legality of such a move? Well, let’s see what Attorney General Pam Bondi has to say about it…
Would you look at that! The Attorney General says it’s “legally permissible,” so it’s all good, right? Well, Pam Bondi used to work on behalf of the Qatari government, earning hundreds of thousands of dollars to lobby for them.6
If that wasn’t enough, there’s also FBI Director, Kash Patel. He also worked on behalf of the Qataris, listing the US Embassy in Qatar as a client for his consulting company, Trishul.7 According to the folks at “State Democracy Defenders Action,” Patel failed to register his consulting work, which may be a violation of the Foreign Agents Relations Act (FARA).
I’ve really only scratched the surface here. The level of corruption, on display for everyone to see, is enough to make even the most ardent con artists blush with embarrassment. Trump and his family are using the Presidency to rake in money, and they’re not even trying to hide it. Why would they? The administration is staffed with loyalists, like Bondi and Patel. With friends like these, who needs to worry about breaking the law? They are the law now.
The average person does not benefit from any of this. As Newark airport’s air traffic control system suffered multiple blackouts in recent days, Trump’s $400 million gift from the Qataris draws a stark contrast. The Department of Transportation will have to beg Congress to act, and provide funding for critically needed upgrades at Newark, and other airports across the country. I dont think Trump needed to beg anyone in Qatar to give him that plane, or anyone in the United Arab Emirates to invest in his family’s meme coin.
And therein lies the problem that belies all corrupt governments across the globe. They exist to enrich those in power, while the average citizen is left behind. Americans can’t do anything about this at the moment, other than peacefully protest, and perhaps call their elected officials to voice their concerns. Hopefully in the 2026 midterm elections, the American people will send Trump a clear message, by erasing the Republican majority in the House of Representatives. And if it gets really bad, maybe they’ll take back the Senate, too.
https://www.gco.gov.qa/en/media-centre/top-news/prime-minister-launches-simaisma-project/
https://apnews.com/article/trump-qatar-deal-conflicts-saudi-arabia-emoluments-7379bee2e307d39bd43b534a05ae3207
https://www.newsweek.com/new-trump-golf-course-55-billion-beachside-project-announced-qatar-2066482
https://x.com/PeninsulaQatar/status/1917692940136374401
https://electionlawblog.org/?p=149689
https://www.newsweek.com/pam-bondi-qatar-lobbying-attorney-general-1990130
https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5124971-kash-patel-qatar-work-fbi-nomination/