★ Private Action
Trump transition review finds Epshteyn sought paid retainers from appointment hopefuls
Donor Influence and AccessMAGA Inc. Pay-to-Play
Filed November 2024
★ The Brief
What happened
An internal Trump-transition legal review led by incoming White House counsel David Warrington concluded that Boris Epshteyn solicited payments from people seeking administration roles, including a substantial retainer tied to Scott Bessent's Treasury nomination. The review recommended constraining his access; Epshteyn called the allegations "false and defamatory."
Who enabled it
Who benefits
Deal or steal?
A sitting president's adviser was found by the transition's own lawyers to have sought private payments from people seeking government jobs — then kept his role. No crime was alleged. Selling access, or business as usual in Washington?
During Donald Trump's 2024 presidential transition, an internal legal review conducted by incoming White House counsel David Warrington concluded that adviser Boris Epshteyn had leveraged his proximity to Trump to solicit payments from people seeking posts or advocacy in the incoming administration. According to the review, Epshteyn sought a substantial retainer tied to Scott Bessent's candidacy for Treasury Secretary after Bessent declined to pay; the review also examined a complaint from former Missouri Governor Eric Greitens about being pressured to do business with Epshteyn. Bessent, who rejected the arrangement, reportedly believed Epshteyn then sought to undercut his nomination.
Actors
Who pushed it · 1Who initiated, paid, or pushed the action.
Boris EpshteynSubject of the transition legal review; reported to have solicited retainers from people seeking administration posts, including a substantial retainer tied to Bessent's Treasury bid. Denied the allegations as "false and defamatory."
Boris Epshteyn has paid into Trump’s orbit:
Beneficiaries
Who gained · 1Who stood to gain.
- Boris Epshteyn
Stood to personally collect the retainers he allegedly solicited by monetizing his proximity to Trump. Denied the allegations as "false and defamatory."
Boris Epshteyn has paid into Trump’s orbit:
Further reading
- ★ Government ActionMay 2025Trump commutes donor Imaad Zuberi's foreign-lobbying sentence
- ★ Government ActionApril 2025Trump pardons Paul Walczak weeks after mother's $1M Mar-a-Lago dinner
- ★ Private ActionApril 2025Elizabeth Fago attends $1M MAGA Inc. dinner before son's pardon
- ★ Government ActionMay 2026DOJ settles Trump IRS suit with $1.8B anti-weaponization fund
- ★ Government ActionFebruary 2026Moroun lobbies Lutnick before Trump threatens Gordie Howe Bridge
- ★ Private ActionJanuary 2026Moroun donates $1M to MAGA Inc. before lobbying against rival bridge