EXODUS ON WHITE HOUSE CORRUPTION March 13, 2026

The book of Exodus says something important about corruption contaminating the Oval Office. Americans should pay heed.

Exodus’ final portion, Pekudei, presents an example of power modified by integrity. The Israelites had brought precious gifts for the Tabernacle and the priests’ vestments. Pekudei begins, “These are the records of the Tabernacle, the Tabernacle of the Pact, that were drawn up at Moses’ bidding . . . (Exodus 38:21).”

The records quantify everything from gold, silver and precious stones to lumber and animal skins. Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks (z”l) wrote in his Torah Commentary: “Moshe [Moses] issued a detailed reckoning to avoid coming under suspicion that he had personally appropriated some of the donated money” (p. 685).

Donald Trump rejects that lesson. According to Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington(CREW), “Donald Trump is set to see enormous, unprecedented income from his overseas real estate developments in his second term, estimated to exceed $400 million and likely over $430 million.” Could that relate to selling presidential influence?

Look at just some of the record.

Last May, Trump accepted a Boeing 747-8 jet from Qatar to be used as a new Air Force One. The flying palace will be refurbished to meet security standards at a taxpayer cost estimated at $400 million. Trump says he’ll donate the plane to his presidential library at the end of his term.

However, the Constitution’s foreign emoluments clause states that “no Person holding any Office of Profit or Trust under them, shall, without the Consent of the Congress, accept of any present, Emolument, Office, or Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince, or foreign State.” Congress has not consented. According to David Super of Georgetown University Law Center, as reported by factcheck.org, if the gift is solely to the United States, it is legal. If it goes to Trump’s library, illegal.

Foreign influence on American policy knows no bounds.

Four days after Trump took office in January, 2025, Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, brother of the president of the United Arab Emirates, made a $500 million (49 percent) investment in Trump’s new World Liberty Financial cryptocurrency platform. Lo and behold, the U.S. gave an Abu Dhabi-based tech company access to advanced AI chips. 

Last September, the White House announced that the G-20 will hold its 2026 meeting at Trump’s Doral (Florida) property. In 2020, Trump sought to host the G7 there but backed off when public outcry became too great. In December, the Doral property will receive attendee revenues while depriving non-Trump properties and other cities an opportunity to host the meeting.

And, Amazon paid Melania Trump $27 million for a documentary budgeted at $75 million. Was Jeff Bezos into making a great film? Disclosure: I haven’t seen it. 

Rabbi Sacks added, “It is the mark of a good society that public leadership is seen as a form of service rather than a means to power, which is all too easily abused. A free society is built on moral foundations, and those must be unshakable” (p. 684).

Many in Washington profess their Christian faith. They might heed I Timothy 6:10: “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil” (New International Version).

Trump’s Oval Office provides the setting for grift after grift. America’s foundations are shaking. Perhaps crumbling.

To understand the background of today’s far-right, authoritarian descent, read my new novel, RIDE THE TYGER. Order from Amazon, barnesandnoble.com, iuniverse.com, or your favorite bookstore.