Conservative Corruption Trump's Villa Luxury Party, Political Economy, and Media Collusion
The US Associated Press reported on the 1st that Trump's 'America First' political economy and media collusion scene was a noisy luxurious party scene.
In an article titled <Trump Calls It the 'Center of the Universe': Mar-a-Lago Attracts Those Seeking Influence>, AP reported that "celebrities such as Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and Tesla and X owner Elon Musk show up for breakfast, lunch, and other social gatherings held daily at the luxurious Mar-a-Lago Club."
In a social media post on December 27, President-elect Trump declared, "Bill Gates asked me to come tonight," and "This resort is the center of the universe."
The AP said, “Trump and Gates’ representatives would not clarify whether the Microsoft co-founder actually joined the parade of figures visiting Mar-a-Lago,” and that “cars began lining up early in the morning to be screened by Secret Service agents under white tents near the fence surrounding the president-elect’s sprawling South Florida estate.”
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg sat down with Trump, whom the Facebook founder had banned from his own social network, while dining with Trump at the Mar-a-Lago club on Nov. 27.
At the time, “Stephen Miller, who was named Trump’s deputy chief of staff, said Zuckerberg, like other business leaders, is eager to support Trump’s economic plan,” and “the tech CEO has been working to change his company’s perception of the right wing since his rocky relationship with Trump,” the AP reported.
“Mark clearly has his own interests, his own company, his own agenda,” Miller said in an interview with Fox News, adding that the meeting was “clear that Mark has his own interests, his own company, his own agenda,” and that “he has made it clear that he wants to support the national renewal of America under Trump’s leadership.”
Mehta’s spokesperson said of the meeting that day, “Zuckerberg was invited to dinner with the president-elect and other members of his team to talk about the next Trump administration.”
Online footage of the daily party scene at Mar-a-Lago, which has been called the “center of the universe,” shows Secret Service agents following Trump around the outdoor tent last weekend as Mike Love, one of the original members of the Beach Boys, performed his hit song, and Trump waded through the crowd, fist-pumping to the music, and at another time in the evening, standing next to his wife Melania near the pool and shaking his head to the music, according to the AP.
Trump’s posts show the resort, which has been largely hidden since the election, as a salon and celebration for investors seeking to secure appointments and jobs in the administration or to curry favor with the next president.
“The photos, often posted online or seen at occasional public events, offer a glimpse into the workings of Trump’s incoming White House and how he is setting priorities for his office,” the AP said. “They raise renewed concerns about transparency, given the secretive nature of the meetings, and questions about how Trump benefits financially by having club members who seek to influence the new administration stay and dine there.”
The Christmas Eve video showed Trump dancing to one of his favorite songs, “YMCA” by the Village People, in a ballroom at the resort filled with guests, while his daughter Ivanka sat nearby in a gilded chair.
The Mar-a-Lago club held a New Year’s Eve party on the night of the 31st, and Trump spoke briefly to reporters near the red carpet where he made his entrance.
“He briefly took to the stage and gave a rousing speech that included Love and many of his picks for Cabinet and other positions in his next administration,” the AP reported. “The former president said 2025 would be a ‘great year’ and that ‘we’re going to do fantastically well as a country.’”
A typical Mar-a-Lago party involves Trump using his Spotify account on his tablet to play much of the same music he often does at campaign rallies while having dinner with friends and family.
“One night, his guest of honor was Sarah Netanyahu, wife of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu; another night, Akie Abe, widow of slain Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, came in,” the AP reported. “Argentine right-wing President Javier Milei danced Trump’s ‘YMCA’ dance at the gala dinner.”
During the day, Trump plays golf at a nearby course with friends, relatives, and supporters like Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.).
Overall, the Mar-a-Lago atmosphere is a mix of the power dynamics of an executive job fair and the rich social scene of South Florida.
“He’s surrounded by old friends,” Graham told the AP. “Everyone I know wants a job.”
Tesla CEO Musk has been a regular at Mar-a-Lago, so much so that Trump’s granddaughter Kai wrote on X that she’s “earning uncle status.”
While at Mar-a-Lago, Trump assigned Musk and biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy to lead the Department of Government Efficiency, a nongovernmental task force formed to figure out how to lay off federal workers, cut programs, and ease federal regulations.
Kevin Roberts, president of the Heritage Foundation, which launched Project 2025 in 2023 as a strategy for the Republican Party’s hard-line conservatives to regain power, spoke at an investor event at Mar-a-Lago in December.
One of the guests at the event was Dr. Peter Ramelas, a health care executive who later became Trump’s ambassador to Argentina.
At times, Trump dined with club members and guests under a yellow-and-white awning in the courtyard; at other times, he addressed large groups in the ballroom for black-tie events; and at a recent gala opening for a nonprofit led by Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn, Trump’s favorite song, “God Bless the USA,” was played as the president-elect walked in.
“It’s the place to be and the place to be seen,” Damian Merlo, a political strategist who advises right-wing El Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele, told the AP.
Merlot attended that event as well as other events hosted by the Conservative Political Action Committee.
At a recent Mar-a-Lago press conference, Trump said of the “change in atmosphere compared to his first term,” “everyone wants to be my friend,” revealing his hereditary politics.
In contrast to his aggressive hostility toward “fake news,” Trump has invited a string of Silicon Valley executives to Mar-a-Lago, including Apple CEO Tim Cook, Google co-founder Sergey Brin, Google CEO Sundar Pichai, and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos.
“Chief executives, top bankers, they’re all calling,” Trump told reporters, adding, “It seems like the complete opposite.”
Actor Russell Brand visited Mar-a-Lago this month to speak at an event, where he sat down with actors Mel Gibson and former Fox News host Tucker Carlson. The brand later posted a video of its Mar-a-Lago party experience on X, writing, “This is incredible.” “Is this real or am I dreaming?”