Speaker Mike Johnson wants everyone to know that President Trump cannot possibly be as bad as “Biden’s crime family.” Unlike Biden, Johnson assures, President Trump does everything out in the open.
Trump instigated an insurrection, stood by his statements calling for the death penalty for the Central Park 5 for no other clear reason than racism, and said he’s “unsure” whether people in the US should expect due process. All out in the open. It’s impossible to argue whether any of these things should be considered acceptable. Some you could argue are even crimes, considering he was convicted for his role in the Capitol attack.
Speaker Mike Johnson was asked this in a press conference in regard to his previous criticism of President Biden’s foreign affairs and his support for impeachment. But according to Speaker Johnson, Trump’s situation is different. “The reason many people refer to the Bidens as the ‘Biden crime family’ is because they were doing all this stuff behind curtains. Whatever President Trump is doing is out in the open.” When Johnson was asked about why that doesn’t apply to Trump’s vague meme coin, he simply answered, “I don’t know anything about the memecoin.”
Speaker Mike Johnson: "The reason many people refer to the Bidens as the 'Biden crime family' is because they were doing all this stuff behind curtains…Whatever President Trump is doing is out in the open. They're not trying to conceal anything…Trump has had nothing to hide." pic.twitter.com/0msqQkRToe
— The Bulwark (@BulwarkOnline) May 14, 2025
According to Johnson, all ethics are being followed “so far as he knows.” The only problem is that by the Republicans’ own standards, the same things they accused Biden of are brazenly being done by the Trump family. Even if we ignore the $400M jet “gifted” by Qatar, CNN reports that President Trump’s family is actually quite invested in the Gulf. Eric Trump is expanding his real estate business into Qatar, and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia has invested $2B in President Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner’s private equity firm. And Donald Trump Jr. has also partnered with the Omani government to build a resort in the country.
It’s hard to dispute that the Trump presidency is influencing these deals in some way, especially considering he has prioritized visiting said countries. There’s also the case of how Trump has changed the status quo of the presidency — from transferring all their business to a blind trust to just transferring his businesses to his children, who are very much a part of his inner orbit.
Speaker Mike Johnson might choose to turn a blind eye in order to maintain party unity, but claims that this move is motivated by anything else is misinformation by omission at best. What’s most worrying is what the Gulf states plan on doing with their newfound influence. With Elon Musk, there’s at least a predetermined conclusion — that Trump’s administration is dictated by how much money you put in.
If you can financially influence Trump, then you can also influence his political positions. Elon Musk wanted to decimate regulators that have been investigating him, so he invented DOGE. One can even argue he had some resentment for his birth state, South Africa, and has found ways to “punish” them and accuse them of “white genocide.” But with the Gulf states, it’s hard to imagine what they could demand.
Especially considering Saudi Arabia’s noted treatment of journalists.
