Paul Krugman / Translation iPress
Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Krugman argues that the Trump administration has crossed the line where the corruption of hidden schemes has turned into blatant embezzlement of taxpayers’ money: a “shadow fund” of $1.8 billion has been officially created for “victims” of persecution, but in reality, it’s for Trump himself, his family, and allies. The author emphasizes: the shamelessness of Trumpists’ actions indicates that there is no way back – either they will destroy America as it is, or they will face collapse and accountability for their deeds. According to Krugman, it is the fear of retribution that drives Trumpists to increasingly brazen crimes and simultaneously to more determined attempts to undermine elections and democratic institutions. Krugman draws parallels with quasi-authoritarian regimes and concludes that the American political system has already crossed the “event horizon.”
Thus, the Trump administration is creating a “fund” of $1.776 billion. 1776 – get the hint? (Krugman is ironic: the figure is chosen not for economic logic, but as an ideological gesture, since 1776 is the year of the adoption of the US Declaration of Independence – iPress). It is supposed to compensate victims of “judicial persecution and the use of justice as a weapon.” To be clear: if you’re a taxpayer in the USA, this means that nearly $1.8 billion of your money will be handed out to those Donald Trump’s appointed commission decides to reward. Among the recipients will likely be the January 6 insurrectionists, as well as Trump himself, his family, and his supporters.
I’m rarely shocked anymore, but this case, where the Trump-aligned Department of Justice is paying out a huge sum to “settle” a lawsuit filed by Trump himself, hits a new low of self-enrichment and once again demonstrates Trump’s complete disregard for the American public.
Of course, large-scale corruption by Trump and his cronies is nothing new. But the shamelessness of the latest episode of embezzlement takes it to a new level. Until now, we have seen a mixture of “crony capitalism” and insider trading. Plutocrats and corporations enriched Trump through indirect channels, primarily through cryptocurrency, in exchange for government contracts and political favors, while Trump and his inner circle made extremely profitable market bets thanks to early knowledge of government policy.
Now, Trump has bypassed intermediaries, effectively ordering his officials to transfer funds directly to him or to anyone else he favors.
Of course, we have long known that Trump is the most corrupt president in U.S. history by several magnitudes. But now Trump is the most openly corrupt leader in the modern world. After all, Putin presumably seized billions, but never so brazenly. Even third-world dictators generally try to cover up their corruption.
Do not console yourself with the notion that this taxpayer-funded “shadow fund” will have no political consequences.
On the contrary, the surveys and focus group analyses that I had the opportunity to review indicate that voters are very outraged by corruption. Trump’s theft of taxpayers’ money, while people are losing health insurance and food assistance and simultaneously suffering from price increases caused by Trump’s policies, is perfect material for Democrats in the upcoming elections.
So, it’s worth asking: why have Trump supporters abandoned any restraint? There have been many corrupt politicians in U.S. history – though they seem like small-time crooks compared to Trump. However, at least they tried to hide their corruption or keep it in the shadows, so they could dodge reactions from voters if necessary.
In my opinion, the blatant nature of the new plundering is a signpost of where America under Trumpism is heading in the coming months and years.
Yes, Trump has a core electorate that will support him under any circumstances – many of his supporters genuinely believe he was chosen by God. This sets a lower boundary for his support. But his latest disastrously low ratings, as Nate Cohn writes in the New York Times, suggest that this boundary may be much lower than many thought.
Nevertheless, we already know that Trump and his allies do not intend to participate in free and fair elections. With generous assistance from the Supreme Court led by Roberts, they have already rigged the midterms through gerrymandering. Trump’s henchmen are actively trying to reduce turnout among voters inclined to vote for Democrats by requiring states to challenge their voter lists. And it would be at least naïve to think that gerrymandering will be MAGA’s last step in undermining democracy.
Yet, Trump understands that even with Republican gerrymandering (manipulative redistricting of electoral districts – iPress), November may bring a “blue wave” substantial enough to give Democrats control over the House of Representatives, and possibly the Senate as well. J. Elliott Morris estimates that Democrats will need a 4-percentage-point advantage in the nationwide vote to win the House; meanwhile, the latest New York Times poll gives them an 11-point advantage. So why doesn’t he even try to hide his corruption a little?
One response: even if MAGA suffers a crushing defeat in November, Democrats cannot rely on “wave” elections in every cycle, and the political field is currently heavily tilted against them. As Morris writes:
“While the situation for Democrats is not necessarily catastrophic in 2026, the situation for democracy in 2028 and beyond is undoubtedly catastrophic.”
Thus, the “$1.8 billion shadow fund” can be seen as a promise to the MAGA environment: rewards await them if they stick with it for another two and a half years.
Apart from this, we are essentially witnessing what happens when the corruption and crime of a quasi-authoritarian regime cross the point of no return.
At this stage, Trump and his MAGA cronies have stolen so much, committed so many crimes—not just embezzlement but also illegal embroiling of America in war, mistreatment of ICE detainees, and more—that should they lose power, many of them would at best face personal ruin, and at worst, long prison terms. And this would happen even if they stopped committing new crimes.
So they have no incentive to stop their crimes or to stop trying to bribe others to play along. Either they manage to destroy America as we know it, or they don’t. And until this is resolved, they are likely to resort to even greater corruption and criminal actions.
Think of it this way: the gravity of what Trumpists have already committed has created a sort of “black hole” at the center of American political life—and Trumpists have already crossed the event horizon, the point beyond which there is no escape. Therefore, they will do increasingly dreadful things—because they have nothing to lose.
