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White House

White House Social Media Guru Earned at Least $1 Million From a Trump Media Investment

Deputy chief of staff Dan Scavino reported seven-figure capital gains from stock in the company behind Truth Social.

White House deputy chief of staff Dan Scavino

White House deputy chief of staff Dan Scavino valued his Trump Media & Technology Group stock holding at between $1 million and $5 million. Alex Brandon/AP

By Dave Levinthal

October 7, 2026 04:40 p.m.

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President Donald Trump’s longtime White House social media guru scored a seven-figure payday last year from the president’s social media company, according to a new federal financial disclosure.

White House deputy chief of staff Dan Scavino disclosed earning between $1 million and $5 million in capital gains during 2025 from a stock holding in Trump Media & Technology Group. The company runs the Truth Social platform that the president regularly uses to announce government decisions, debate national affairs, promote his friends and lambaste his enemies.

Scavino valued his Trump Media & Technology Group stock holding at between $1 million and $5 million, according to his financial disclosure, which he filed last month and the federal Office of Government Ethics released this week. (Government officials are only required by law to disclose stock values in broad ranges.)

Scavino joins recently departed White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt among White House officials who reported investments last year in a Trump business venture.

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Scavino previously directed White House social media efforts. He has continued to play a key role managing Trump’s social media presence, as The Washington Post reported last year, while personally profiting from his stake in Trump’s social media outfit.

Scavino purchased his Trump Media & Technology Group stock prior to joining Trump’s second presidential administration and becoming a government employee, a White House official said Tuesday.

In a statement to The Washington Sun, White House counsel Will Scharf said his office “regularly works with appointees to provide ethics guidance and help ensure compliance with applicable federal ethics laws and regulations. In this case, we believe Dan Scavino complied with those requirements and have no further concerns.”

Office of Government Ethics official Scott F. Gast certified Scavino’s personal financial disclosure, which federal law requires for high-ranking executive branch employees, as “in compliance with applicable laws and regulations.” Another agency official, Megan Granahan, concurred on Oct. 1, according to Scavino’s disclosure document.

Office of Government Ethics spokesperson Patrick Shepherd declined to comment, saying that while his agency is “committed to transparency and citizen oversight of government,” it “does not respond to questions about specific individuals.”

Aaron Scherb, a longtime federal government ethics watchdog, suggested Scavino could avoid overstepping any ethical lines by divesting his Trump Media stock, placing his assets in a qualified blind trust or shifting his wealth into diversified financial instruments such as mutual funds.

Scavino reported having between $850,000 and $1.75 million in Vanguard exchange-traded funds and $500,000 to $1 million in a bank account.

Scavino’s financial disclosure also indicates that he earned up to $100,000 in capital gains from stock in financial platform company Robinhood Markets, which he valued at between $100,000 and $250,000.

Robinhood has partnered with the U.S. Treasury to serve as broker for Trump Accounts, a tax-advantaged government investment account designed to help American children build wealth. The company also contributed $2 million to Trump’s 2025 presidential inauguration. Its stock price is up more than 100% from when Trump began his second term.

Scavino has previously drawn legal scrutiny for his actions while serving in the White House.

In 2017, the Office of Special Counsel ruled that Scavino violated the Hatch Act by calling for the defeat of then-Rep. Justin Amash (R-Michigan). He received a warning letter.

The Department of Justice also declined to file contempt of Congress charges against Scavino in 2022 after he refused to honor a subpoena issued by the U.S. House select committee investigating the January 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol.

Author

STAFF_Dave Levinthal_MUG-500px.png Dave Levinthal is an editor at The Washington Sun.

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