Democratic senators probe scope of Trump's IRS immunity deal

Three Democratic senators are investigating a U.S. government agreement barring past tax probes of President Donald Trump and his businesses, saying they want to determine whether the deal also protects companies affiliated with his family. 

"Under the guise of a so-called legal settlement, the Trump administration has attempted to decree that the president, his family and their entire business empire — potentially including entities with even the vaguest 'affiliation' to the family — are to face zero consequences if they have committed a range of financial crimes or misdeeds — regardless of the severity of the violation," Senators Elizabeth Warren, Chuck Schumer and Ron Wyden said Tuesday.

The senators said in a press release that they sent letters to a group of businesses including the family's real estate firm, the Trump Organization and the crypto platform World Liberty Financial Inc., which Trump and his sons co-founded. At other companies, members of the Trump family serve in investor, executive or advisory capacities. The congressional inquiries also went out to Powerus, Foundation Future Industries, Tag Air, American Bitcoin, Kaz Resources, Trump Media and Technology Group, Kalshi Inc., Polymarket and 1789 Capital asking if it is their understanding that the agreement protects them from possible violations of law.

The protectionagainst probes of past tax filings was part of a controversial settlement in which Trump agreed to drop a $10 billion lawsuit he filed against the Internal Revenue Service in January over a 2019 leak of his tax information to the press. In May, Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said the deal applied to Trump, his family members and businesses. 

Trump Media, in a statement, said it had received the letter from the senators and "is committed to robust disclosure in accordance with applicable laws and regulations." 

'Partisan stunt'

William A. Burck, a lawyer for 1789 Capital, said the firm "has never been under IRS audit or government investigation." He added, "The letter is nothing more than a partisan stunt and politically motivated harassment, which is all too common these days."

Powerus spokesman Joel Richman said the company "was not a party to the settlement referenced and had no involvement in it." 

Kalshi, the prediction market operator, told the senators it doesn't believe it's among the affiliated parties covered in the settlement agreement, according to a copy of the company's response viewed by Bloomberg News.

Representatives for the other companies didn't immediately comment. The Justice Department didn't respond to requests for comment.

Aside from the Trump Organization, none of the other businesses contacted by the senators were named plaintiffs in Trump's IRS lawsuit, raising questions about whether they could actually be protected from audits or prosecution under the terms of the settlement, as the Democratic lawmakers' letters suggest.

Under the settlement, the IRS is "forever barred" from pursuing "any and all claims" or demands for damages that have been or could have been filed against Trump before the agreement was reached. The language of the settlement said it also covers "related companies, affiliates and subsidiaries." 

The agreement was part of a broader plan to create a $1.8 billion fund to compensate victims of alleged government "weaponization." The U.S. Justice Department eventually dropped the fund plan in the face of intense political and public opposition, but said the deal related to government audits and investigations remained in effect.