House Democrats accuse Trump’s Freedom 250 of misleading donors, potential wire fraud

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Democrats on the House Natural Resources Committee released an interim report on Thursday alleging Freedom 250 potentially misled donors, directing them to complete payments that were rerouted.

“According to sources interviewed by Committee Democrats, donors who intended to donate to America250 were instead given wire instructions with Freedom 250’s banking information—including its routing number and account number—so that contributions would instead flow to Freedom 250,” the House report says.

“A gift solicited in the name of the nation’s nonpartisan birthday commission could thus be redirected without the donor’s knowledge, by an entity created to serve the President’s priorities,” it continues.

The donors cited in the report were unnamed, but lawmakers say individuals who were attempting to provide contributions to the nonpartisan, congressionally chartered America250 Commission were tricked into funding Freedom 250, an executive branch public-private partnership heavily supported by private donations and organized under the White House’s Task Force 250.

Democrats say logos for the two groups were used interchangeably and noted that Freedom 250 organizers “aggressively” targeted America250 donors.

Democratic lawmakers note that if the allegations are true, it would constitute wire fraud and charitable solicitation fraud under federal law.

Freedom 250 denied any accusations of wrongdoing.

“After 10 years and more than $120 million spent, America250 had nothing to show for it. Worse, they lost sight of the mission and, instead of celebrating America, too many wanted to apologize for it. Freedom 250 was created because the American people deserved better,” Freedom 250 spokesperson Danielle Alvarez told The Hill.

“We stepped in to rescue our nation’s 250th birthday from years of wasted time, wasted money, and failed planning. We are unapologetic about celebrating the greatest nation on earth, and we are delivering the historic celebration Americans deserved,” Alvarez added.

Leaders of Freedom 250 could also be subject to charitable solicitation violations under the laws of the District of Columbia, where it is registered and operates as an LLC, per the report.

Freedom 250 is a subsidiary of the National Park Foundation (NPF), which was tasked by the National Park Service to help execute 250th anniversary activities in and around national parks.

“When the nonpartisan, congressionally chartered America250 Commission refused to bend to the President’s demands, the White House built a replacement – Freedom 250 LLC – and declared it the central platform for the national celebration,” House Natural Resources Ranking Member Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) said in a statement.

“The White House lodged this shadow organization inside the National Park Foundation so it could exploit the credibility and donor relationships of a beloved public charity while operating outside the transparency rules Congress wrote into law for the commission,” he added.

Democrats say Trump overthrew the NPF board and appointed members who have backed his presidential campaigns and other business ventures to helm fundraising efforts.

“President Trump’s appointment of loyalists at the NPF sets a dangerous precedent because it turns a public-interest partner into a political instrument that threatens NPF’s independence, credibility, and ability to protect our national parks long after the semiquincentennial and Freedom 250 have passed,” the House report says.

Democrats say Meredith O’Rourke, who headed fundraising efforts for Freedom 250 and sits on the NPF board, is also in charge of courting private donors to support projects including the White House Ballroom, the East Potomac Golf Links, the Kennedy Center and National Garden of American Heroes.

Wealthy philanthropists are promised photo-ops with Trump, invitations to private events sponsored by the White House and, in some cases, name recognition in spaces on the campus grounds.

“The President has pursued significant fundraising opportunities since the beginning of his second term that have raised concerns with government ethics experts and good government groups,” the report says noting that Freedom 250 sponsors including Deloitte, ExxonMobil, John Deere, Mastercard, Oracle, Palantir and Penske failed to disclose donations made to the organization in their lobbying disclosure forms, despite being listed as corporate sponsors on the website.

“This arrangement is made possible because Freedom 250 sits inside NPF and therefore inherits NPF’s donor disclosure practices. Although NPF discloses some of its donors, it only does so for honorific purposes and, in fact, acknowledges that some donations are anonymous, allowing Freedom 250 donations to be kept secret. This structure permits Freedom 250 to function as a financial black box,” it continues.

Democrats say they’re unsure how long Freedom 250 will operate.

“Sources at NPF indicated that Freedom 250 LLC will be shut down and cease to exist after the work is complete and an audit has been conducted. NPF plans to dissolve the LLC once its money is spent, with any leftover funds returning to NPS for the agency’s discretionary use,” the report says.

“However, soon after Freedom 250’s establishment, NPF began receiving federal funds for activities associated with the 250th celebrations that could be spent for years to come,” it adds.

Updated at 6:13 p.m. EDT

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America250 Commission

Donald Trump

Donald Trump

Freedom 250

Freedom250

House Natural Resources Committee

Jared Huffman

National Park Foundation

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