US Men Advance In World Cup

President Trump and his family made more than a billion dollars last year, much of it from crypto. His enormous earnings are raising a lot of questions about possible conflicts of interest. The White House says there's nothing wrong with it. I'm Am Martinez. That is Michelle Martin, and this is a first from NPR News Democratic socialists gaining momentum after primary wins in New York and Colorado, Republicans are betting they can paint the whole party as to extreme, which could be a challenge for Democrats eyeing midterm races. canan they tap into that deemocratic socialist energy without the label? And the US men are through to the World Cups' round of sixteenth. They beat Bosnia Herzegovina, although they had to play a man down for their first knockout win in twenty four years Their top scorer is suspended for the next game. Stay with us, we'll give you news you need to start your day President Trump's financial disclosures show that the president and his family took in more than one billion dollars through cryptocurrency sales and other business ventures. The report released this week shows the crypto earnings sharply outpaced Trump's real estate businesses, which had already made the president a wealthy man They also raise questions about possible conflicts of interest. And Pereis, Linda Kenyan is with us this morning. Welcome, Linda. Glad to have you with us. Thank you. goodood morning. Now that we've had some time to dig into this nine hundred twenty seven page financial disclosure document, what exactly are we learning about the crypto earnings for the president and his family? Well, we're learning a lot. The twenty twenty five report, which was filed with the Office of Government Ethics showhows Cryptocurrency venture, World Liberty Financial which was co founded by Trump and his family members, took in more than five hundred million dollars In addition, the sale of Trump's souvenir type meme coins took in more than six hundred million The official version of those meme coins with Trump's face stamped on it was launched just days before he took his second term inauguration Other income included more than fifty million doars from settlements with media companies, millions from selling Trump branded Bibles, sneakers, watches. Those watches with the Trump imprint brought in more than four point seven million dollars all by themselves And that's all separate from the president's overseas real estate ventures Many of them with countries that have been negotiating with the U.S on tariffs and military aid and several other issues. What's the White House saying Well, the White House has released a statement that denies any conflict of interest. spokperson Anna Kelly said, quote Neither the president nor his family has ever engaged or will ever engage in conflicts of interest She also applauds the president for making the US, as she put it, the crypto capital of the world through executive actions President Trump himself also answered reporters who asked about his earnings when he was leaving for the Dakotas yesterday at Joint base Andrews. We have funds that run my money Well, I've made a lot of money before I became president. and they invest my money and I don't talk to them. I I don't even speak to them. So I have Many people, I don't know what they call closed accounts or something, you put your money in And that's said. I don't talk to them. They're big institutions. And they run it That's not unlike the response that White House press Secretary Caroline Levitt gave when she was asked about Trump's meeting with top investors in his meme coin, a meeting that took place in May of twenty twenty five. The president is abiding by all conflict of interest laws that are applicable to the president. And I think everybody, the American public believe it's absurd for anyone to insinuate that this president is profiting off of the presidency Trump on Wednesday said he's also earning more because the stock market is doing well saying everybody is profiting. So the White House and the president deny any conflict or abuse of the office. L I have to note that even some of the president's traditional supporters, some of the podcasters, for example, are raising questions about this. But what about other people? Are there other critics of this? Yes, absolutely. Democrats have a lot to say. For example, California Senator Adam Schiff suggested the president has made more money in the first year of his term than in the rest of his life combined And Cgressman Jason Crow called the president's crypto earnings another example of what he termed grift and corruption Colorado Democrats also pointed out that Trump on Wednesday was taking his first flight on a brand new Air Force one, a gift from a foreign government Tutter Valued at more than four hundred million dollars and will stay in the Trump realm when he leaves office. The White House says the aircraft will be a donation to Trump's presidential library. That's in heres, Linda Kenyant. Linda, Thank you. Thank you . Democratic socialists have scored some high profile victories over the last few days. And in the view of many Republicans, that should be a warning sign for voters, here's President Trump on Wednesday. We're not gonna let communists get in our way. We're not gonna let anyone get on our way. Not to come. Not the communists. For Democrats, these kinds of attacks come as no surprise, but they still pose a challenge for the party as they look ahead to this year's midterms and a path back to the majority in Congress. AndR political reporter, Elene Moore has been keeping an eye on all this and is with us. Now good morning, Elena. Good morning Michelle. So we saw Democratic socialists win big victories in New York City last week and then again this week in Denver. How are they doing it Well, it's a mix of things. Democrats have struggled to coalesce around a clear post twenty twenty four message, but many of these successful campaigns endorsed by the Democratic Socialists of America or DSA, do have a core message, one that's centered around economic populism and rejecting the political status quo. They're also not shying away from more polarizing issues abolishing Iice and an end to US military aid in Israel. And taken together, it's a platform that appears to be energizing people, at least in these super blue areas. What did that look like in Denver To back up real quick, the DSA is not a registered political party. It's a membership group. So that's why these candidates are running in the Democratic Party primary. And that's what Millat Kirros did in Denver. She's a twenty nine year old first time candidate who unseated longtime Democrat Diana De Gette. And make no mistake, De Gette is seen as a progressive on Capitol Hill, but she's also been there since nineteen ninety seven, the year Kirros was born Kiros campaigned as an anti establishment candidate, calling for a new type of politics. And like many leftist candidates this year, she tried to differentiate herself by vocally rejecting money from corporate pacts and pro Israel lobbying groups and criticizing her opponent for taking those same kinds of donations in the past. Can you talk about the drawbacks other Democrats see in these DSA victories. Well, several of these candidates are going from activists to politiciian, and skeptics are wasting no time highlighting at least one of these candidates' past comments disparaging Democrats Some Democrats are hesitant to associate with DSA, saying it could complicate their message and toss up races where control of Congress will ultimately be decided. Matt Bennett with the Centrist Think tank Third wayay, argued that Republicans will paint any Democrat as a Democratic socialist in hopes that it will make them seem too extreme. Of course, it's possible to run as a left leaning populace without adopting the maximalism of the extremes But it is very hard for Democrats now to distinguish themselves. What did the Democratic socialists say to that I talked to Claire Valez about it. She's one of two candidates for Congress who won in New York last week. She argues this is not a radical movement We're seeing it not just in New York City, but really around the country that there's broad consensus around the need to recenter wororking class, you know, Americans in our politics and really fight to make sure that the Democratic Party is leading on these issues. So with all that said, what's the calculus for Democrats as they look ahead to November Well, candidates who don't want to be associated with DSA are going to try to strike a balance tapping into some of that same messaging without the DSA label. And that's not going to stop the GOP from framing people as extreme. But given how frustrated folks are with politics right now, I'll be watching to see if voters are more willing to look past those kind of attacks. That's NPRs, Elena more, Elena, thank you Thanks, Michelle . Okay, now a two nothing win may not sound like much of a nail biter, but last night in the FIFA World Cup, the US men's national team looked like it might be on the ropes before pulling out a win against Bosnia Herzegovina. It's first time in almost a quarter century that the United States has won a game in the World Cup knockout stage. NPR sports correspondent Becky Sullivan was there Hopefully she's gotten her heart rate back down. now she's joining us on the line from San Jose California. Good mning Becky Good morning, Michelle. I mean, what a game How big a win is this? Unbelievable. Yeah. I mean, this was a wild ride. It's a huge win, Michelle because I mean, just being there, the US had to work and work and work to get that first goal to go up one to zero just before halfftime. And then there's striker Falarn Balligan, who is this like the newest big star of this team made this disastrous mistake in the second half. He got his legs tangled up with a Bosnian defender. He stepped on the defender's ankle. It went to a video review and it was deemed a red card meaning He was out for the game. off course, and the US. was forced to play down a man for the remainder of the games, which was like twenty five minutes plus stoppage time. And I don't think any fan in the stadium was confident at all in that point in a US win. Bosnia was of course only down one. anything could have happened. and they pulled it off for the biggest win for the US men's national team in a good long time. Okay, so tell us about the win was this hero moment in the second half When the US went up T Nil tellell us about. Yeah, exactly. Yeah. So they were playing shorthanded. They're down a guy. but this yellow card on a Bosian defender gave the US. this golden opportunity a free kick from near the top of the penalty area and up steps midfielder Malik Tilman. He couldn't have hit a prettier shot just right over the wall of defenders and into the net He is just one of the best most skilled players on the team, and yet he is also just one of the quietest, most understated, one of the most soft spoken people I think I've ever met. sometometimes you even struggle to hear him when he's just speaking to a small crowd of us reporters. and here is how he put it after the game. I'm a different type of person on the pitch. Of course maybe you don't really see my emotions, but if you score a gol like this, I mean I think also you guys saw my emotions. N, so it's a great feeling and Of course a very proud moment for me. Yes, you could hear quet he is there. He was born in Germany. his mom is German. hisis dad was in the American Armed Forces. He's American. And so Maliinkka is just one of these dual nationals the US., of course is very happy to have on the team right now. because when you can score a shorthanded goal like that, Michelle, there is nothing that takes the wind out of the sails faster for an opponent in a game like that Okay, but this red card ight Yes It is a big deal. Yeahah. unfortunately, it's a big deal because Balligan has become a huge centerpiece of this team in the World Cup. So far. he has played three games. He had three goals, which is already tied for the second most all time by any American man in a single W worldld Cup He's not the type of guy who picks up a lot of yellow and red cards. This is his first ever red card for the national team. So sitting out is going to be a big deal here is his teamate Christian Palisic after the game. It's just disappointing.ike I understand it's, you know a dangerous act in a way, but if he's just trying to put his foot on the ground, if it wasn't high on his leg, it's just so unfortunate You can just like really hear the disappointment in his voice. I mean, Palisic is exactly the guy, by the way, who benefits from Bealigan being on the field because Valagan is good. it takes away some of the pressure from Polic, who has long been the biggest star of the U.S men's national team. now. the opponent next week, Belgium will get to focus more of that attention on Christian Pisic. So for people who don't know the game that well yet That means that Balligan is out for the next match, which is against Belgium. So what else are we going to see there? Yeah, you know, it's hard to know. you know, Belgium has been a team with some real ups and downs this year on one hand. You had Belgium in the US playing in a frenzly back in March. Belgium won that one really easily actually. It was five to two kind of a big blowout win. But on the other hand, they've looked like one of the most beaatable, quote unquote good teams in this tournament so far in this World Cup. So I think it's a difficult one to predict. The US certainly has a chance even without Baligan And a win mich show would bring the Americans to the quarterfinals, which would match the deepest run they've ever had in a modern World Cup. That is And here's Becky Sullivan, Beckggy, than you You're welcome And that's up first for Thursday, july second. I'm Michelle Martin. Emy Martinez Today's episode of Up F firstirst was edited by Jan Johnson, Russell Lewis, Jason Bresloow, Alice Wolfey and Mohamedl Martisi was produced by Zet Budge and Neia Damas. Our director is Christopher Thomas. We get engineering support from Stacacey Abbott, Our technical director is Zach Coleman, and our deputy executive producer is Kelly Dickens join us again tomorrow