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Records obtained by ProPublica on Wednesday show Attorney General Pam Bondi sold $1-$5 million worth of stock in Trump Media on the same day President Donald Trump announced new tariffs that plunged the stock market.
Trump Media, which runs the social media platform Truth Social, fell 13% the next day before rebounding.
Trump’s “Freeing Day” press conference from the White House Rose Garden announced tariffs after the market closed on April 2nd. Bondy’s disclosure form, which says Trump’s media sales took place on April 2, did not say whether it occurred before or after the market was closed.
Transactions by government officials notified by non-public information learned through their work may violate the law. However, cases against government officials have been legally challenging, and in recent years judges have largely narrowed what constitutes illegal insider trading.
It is unclear from public records whether Bondi, as Attorney General, had prior knowledge of the private details of the tariffs that Trump had announced the day. Trump, of course, has publicly announced plans to enact dramatic tariffs during the election campaign. However, during the first weeks of his term, the market seemed to assume that his campaign promises were fierce.
The Department of Justice did not immediately answer any questions about the transaction.
The disclosure form provides a rough scope rather than including the specific shares sold or their value. The document does not say exactly when she sold the stock or at what price she sold. The company’s stock price ended at $18.76 on April 2nd, and it fell further in the future after opening at $17.92 after a press conference the following morning. Bondi’s disclosure form shows that in addition to selling Trump Media stocks worth between $1 million and $5 million, it also sold warrants worth between $250,000 and $500,000 on Trump Media.
Bondi’s ownership of Trump Media’s stock has been previously disclosed. Before she became Attorney General, Bondi was a consultant at Digital World Acquisition Corp., a special purpose acquisition company that merged with Trump Media to reveal the president’s social media company.
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As part of her ethics agreement, Bondy had pledged to sell her stake in Trump Media within 90 days of confirmation.
On April 1, Trump Media filed disclosures with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including details regarding the holdings of various top shareholders, including Trump and Bondy. The purpose of the filing is unknown, as well as whether it is related to Bondi sales the following day. It appeared to be re-registering for stocks sold by some of the company’s top shareholders.
Alex Mierjeski contributed to his research.
