Various news outlets over the last few days have some breaking news you need to know about: Donald Trump will do just about anything for money.
Oh, what a shocker.
However, in this specific instance, Mr. MAGA himself was paid over $2 million to call a boxing match down in Florida a few years ago.
As USA Today noted just recently in its reporting:
“At the time, former President Donald Trump said he was being paid an “obscene” amount of money to call a 2021 fight between Evander Holyfield and former UFC champion Vitor Belfort.
He wasn’t kidding.
A revised personal financial disclosure filing from Trump revealed that his most lucrative speaking engagement during his post-presidential life paid him $2.5 million, which came from Triller Legends II LLC in September 2021.
Triller Fight Club promoted the crossover boxing match between Holyfield and Belfort, which Belfort won by first-round TKO on Sept. 11, 2021 at the Seminole Hard Rock in Hollywood, Florida. Trump provided color commentary during the four-fight main card.”
Hey, to be honest, everyone in our capitalist society needs to make money somehow, right?
While this might seem a little strange for an ex-president to be doing, Trump has always shown a passion for sports, from golf to even the WWE and pro wrestling.
In fact, many have argued that Trump used bits and personality traits from his pro-wrestling character as the basis of his 2016 run for the White House. That might explain some of his comments during the campaign and why he acts how he does – it might just be an act.
Donald Trump: Living the American Dream?
And, to be honest, is this really that bad?
He could be like many ex-presidents or political figures who use ghostwriters (yes, don’t be shocked) to create some politically correct memoir about their time and office and make millions of dollars in speaking fees. What is crazier? At least this is somewhat entertaining and comical. Those memoirs put me to sleep.
My guess, no matter what happens in 2024, Donald Trump will find lots of ways to make money – and many of them will be pretty strange indeed, well at least for us normal folk, that is.
Harry J. Kazianis (@Grecianformula) is a Senior Editor for 19FortyFive and serves as President and CEO of Rogue States Project, a bipartisan national security think tank. He has held senior positions at the Center for the National Interest, the Heritage Foundation, the Potomac Foundation, and many other think tanks and academic institutions focused on defense issues. He served on the Russia task force for U.S. Presidential Candidate Senator Ted Cruz, and in a similar role in the John Hay Initiative. His ideas have been published in the New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Newsweek, CNN, CNBC, and many other outlets across the political spectrum.
