Trump denies seeking $230M from his own DOJ, says ‘I’d give it to charity’

WASHINGTON, DC: President Donald Trump denied a New York Times report claiming he sought $230 million from taxpayers.

The report, citing anonymous sources, alleged that Trump was demanding the money from the Department of Justice in response to its investigations into him. He addressed the claim after a reporter questioned him on October 21 in the Oval Office.

Donald Trump says, ‘I don’t get any compensation'

When asked about the New York Times report alleging he sought compensation from the Justice Department, Trump firmly denied it, calling the story baseless.

A reporter asked, “Are you asking the Justice Department to pay you compensation?” Trump interrupted, “Whose compensation?” When the reporter clarified, “For the federal investigations into you,” Trump appeared confused or caught off guard.

“Into me?” he asked, before the reporter repeated the question: “Are you asking them to pay compensation, and how much?”

Trump replied, “I don’t get any compensation. I do it for nothing. I gave up my salary.” He added, “Well, I guess they probably owe me a lot of money for that, probably. That’s true. That’s very interesting. No, I get no salary. I gave up my salary.”

Reflecting on his decision to forgo his presidential salary, Trump continued, “It’s a good salary, not as much as these guys make, but that’s okay.”

He then added, “As far as all of the litigation and everything, yeah, they probably owe me a lot of money. But I’m not looking for money. I’d give it to charity or something.” Trump said that if he ever received funds from the government, he would “do something nice with it — give it to charity or give it to the White House, where we restore the White House.”

He also mentioned ongoing renovations, saying, “We’re doing a good job. As you know, the ballroom is under construction.” This referred to the $250 million East Wing reconstruction project, which began demolition on October 20.

What did The New York Times report about Trump?

According to The New York Times, Trump has been pushing the Justice Department to pay him a $230 million settlement related to investigations conducted during both his presidency and the Biden administration.

The proposed settlement would likely require approval from senior Justice Department officials — some of whom previously represented Trump or his allies.

The report said the discussions stemmed from two administrative claims filed by Trump’s legal team in 2023 and 2024. One claim sought damages related to the investigation into alleged ties between Trump’s 2016 campaign and the Russian government.

The second claim, publicly reported in 2024, accused then–Special Counsel Jack Smith of malicious prosecution and alleged that Trump’s privacy rights were violated when the FBI searched his Mar-a-Lago estate for classified documents in August 2022.