Local time on Monday, Trump's transition team spokesman and future White House Communications Office director Steven Cheung made a rare statement regarding an 'internal review'.
Steven stated: 'Following standard procedures, we have conducted and completed a thorough review of the consulting agreements for the campaign team, including agreements involving Boris and others. We are now moving forward as a team to help President Trump make America great again.'
Who is this Boris? Why is there a review? What does this have to do with the personnel appointments of the 'Trump 2.0 administration'?
Requesting money from the incoming Treasury Secretary
The central figure of the 'internal review' is Boris Epshteyn. According to multiple media reports, after several 'insiders' alerted Trump that Epshteyn was soliciting money from those seeking cabinet nominations, Trump instructed the legal team to conduct a review.
(Boris Epshteyn (far right) accompanied Trump to the court hearing)
David Wolington, the chief legal advisor for Trump's team, recently completed the review report, confirming that Epshteyn had solicited payment from candidates, with 'victims' including Scott Besant, the incoming U.S. Treasury Secretary, who has recently received strong attention from the capital markets.
The report recommends terminating Trump's employment relationship and close contact with Epshteyn, while warning that the incoming president may face a scandal. Epshteyn has been a senior lawyer for Trump's team and has closely followed Trump since 2016, briefly serving in the White House Communications Office in 2017.
After the 2020 election, he was responsible for coordinating the defense work for Trump's series of criminal cases. He was also charged in Arizona for 'organizing false certification of Republican electors claiming Trump won the 2020 election'. The review report mentions that Epshteyn met with Besant in February this year, at which time Besant had already shown interest in the Treasury position.
Epshteyn proposed a monthly allowance of $30,000 to $40,000 and was willing to 'promote' Besant within Trump's Mar-a-Lago club circle. Although Besant refused to pay, he still tried to accommodate Epshteyn, avoiding offending someone who seemed very powerful in Trump's circle. Later, Epshteyn proposed that Besant invest $10 million to establish a '3-on-3 basketball league', which was again rejected by Besant, leading to a decline in their relationship.
Insiders revealed that on November 14, Besant called Epshteyn to question whether he was 'stabbing him in the back' - speaking ill of him to people around Trump. Epshteyn mocked Besant, saying it was 'too late to pay him now' and he was 'Boris FXXXing Epshteyn'. The legal review also found that Epshteyn later confronted Besant at Mar-a-Lago, witnessed by several of Trump's allies, who stated it seemed like an 'intimidation tactic'. The review also discovered that Epshteyn had contacted a former Trump administration employee, now a defense contractor. He attempted to have this contractor pay him $100,000 a month during the transition period.
The investigation results show that Epshteyn told the contractor that he 'knew who to contact in the Department of Defense', implying that the contractor's business relied on him. In response to a series of reports, Epshteyn's side stated: 'I am honored to work for President Trump and his team. These claims are false, defamatory, and will not distract us from our focus on making America great again.'
Epshteyn has another connection to the Trump family - he is a college classmate of Trump's son Eric. Eric also stated during a Fox News interview on Monday that, although he has known Boris for many years and always thought he was a good person, 'my father's stance is very clear, it should never be done under any circumstances.' Eric expressed that if anyone dared to do so, they would definitely be affected. Eric added that he hopes these reports are 'false', but if they are true, then 'that person might not be around (anymore).'
Trump's circle is not peaceful
On Monday afternoon local time in the U.S., the conservative website Just the News first reported parts of Epshteyn's behavior. The site also posted Trump's critical remarks: 'I think every president has some people around them trying to make money outside (using the president's influence). It's a shame, but it does happen. However, anyone working for me, regardless of their position, should not be thinking about making money from this job.'
Reports surrounding Epshteyn also highlight significant conflicts of interest on Trump's political orbit. Many allies or advisors around Trump are advocating for other individuals or interest groups, but they do not always disclose to Trump or senior aides that 'they are being paid'.
This review report also describes a pattern: advisors close to Trump approach anyone wanting to get close to Trump and help them achieve their goals for a fee.
Aside from working for Trump, Epshteyn's political experience is nearly nonexistent. However, since 2021, Republican candidates participating in local or state elections have been paying Epshteyn consulting fees.
Epshteyn's story also reveals another layer of struggle: a battle for attention within Trump's circle. People around Trump revealed that Epshteyn frequently calls Trump to relay positive news. Therefore, he is referred to by other senior advisors as the 'good news fairy'.
Insiders say that after the November election, Epshteyn was almost daily spending several hours at Mar-a-Lago, suggesting recommendations for official appointments to the president-elect, including nominating Matt Gaetz for Attorney General. This behavior also drew dissatisfaction from other Trump advisors, who believed that recommending officials exceeded his job responsibilities. According to reports, as a major donor to Trump, Musk also privately expressed surprise at the 'great power' Epshteyn wielded.
Earlier, U.S. media also reported that Musk had publicly clashed with Epshteyn at Mar-a-Lago. The world's richest man was unhappy with Epshteyn's influence on cabinet nomination candidates and accused him of leaking details to the media, while Epshteyn firmly denied this accusation.#BabyMarvinf9c7值得拥🈶 