“A large chunk of the $2 billion haul President Trump took in last year came as hundreds of thousands of his fans and other investors bet on a speculative cryptocurrency called $TRUMP, hoping its value would soar with his return to the White House,” the New York Times reports.

“But while Mr. Trump amassed an eye-popping $636 million from the cryptocurrency, known as a memecoin, many of his followers who heeded his call to purchase the coin came out losers.”

“The Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool is surrounded by fencing. So is Lafayette Park, just north of the White House. The Great American State Fair, on the National Mall, is encased by so much fencing — several panels labeled with the word ‘FREEDOM’ — that it is difficult to reach several Smithsonian museums or a nearby Metro station,” the New York Times reports.

“Presiding over a series of fenced-off or under-construction festivities ahead of the country’s 250th celebration is President Trump, who does not seem to mind that some of the nation’s most enduring symbols of liberty and expression are closed off and militarized…”

“In his drive to ‘beautify’ the nation’s capital, Mr. Trump seems to have turned portions of the city into either a construction zone or an armed camp as he seeks to prove that he alone can improve a city he interacts with primarily from his armored limousine or presidential helicopter.”

“The Middle East has been good for President Trump’s bottom line,” the Wall Street Journal reports.

“Entities from the Gulf paid around $300 million to the president’s businesses last year, more than any other foreign region identifiable in his financial disclosures released Tuesday, which detailed more than $2 billion in revenue across his businesses.”