United States of America

Trump Oil Stocks Surge $15.5M, Democrats Claim

Is Trump personally profiting from the Iran War or a hands-off investor being falsely blamed?

Published AUG 25

Trump Oil Stocks Surge $15.5M, Democrats Claim

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Above: U.S. President Donald Trump speaks in the White House Rose Garden in Washington, D.C., on Aug. 24. Image credit: Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images

The Facts

Democrats on Congress' Joint Economic Committee released a report on Monday finding that U.S. President Donald Trump's oil and gas stock holdings gained as much as $15.5 million in 2026 amid the ongoing U.S. conflict with Iran.
US Congress Joint Economic Committee
The report assessed that Trump reported oil and gas holdings worth between $12.5 million and $45.6 million in his 2025 annual financial disclosure published in June. Using these figures, Democrats estimated those investments grew to between $17.2 million and $61.1 million, appreciating roughly 39% through Aug. 17.
US Congress Joint Economic Committee
United States Office of Government Ethics (OGE)
United States Office of Government Ethics (OGE)
Standout investments for the president allegedly include Valero Energy and Marathon Petroleum, which have each more than doubled their stock price since January, rising 110% and 117%, respectively, as well as Phillips 66, which surged 84% over the same period.
US Congress Joint Economic Committee
The committee also found that Trump bought up to $3.6 million in oil and gas stocks in the first quarter of 2026, a period covering both the U.S. operation in Venezuela and the start of the Iran war. His accounts additionally purchased Chevron stock in the weeks after the Venezuela operation, as the company began operations in the country.
US Congress Joint Economic Committee
In a statement responding to the report, White House spokesman Davis Ingle said Trump and his family play no role in determining or influencing investment decisions, which he claimed are "made entirely by independent managers."
CNBC
Quartz
In total, Trump reported more than $2.2 billion in earnings in 2025, including over $1.4 billion tied to cryptocurrency ventures. Federal law does not require a president to divest private assets, but it does compel the incumbent to disclose them annually.
Fox 56
The New Yorker
United States Congress

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The Spin

Anti-Trump narrative

The latest report by Democrats exposes the extent to which Trump is profiting from the economic hardship Americans are enduring. While families struggle to make ends meet, shelling out an extra $71.5 billion collectively at the pump since the Iran War began, Trump has made as much as $15.5 million from his oil and gas portfolio. If this isn't a conflict of interest, then nothing is.

MS Now

US Congress Joint Economic Committee

Pro-Trump narrative

Democrats may not like it, but the truth is that President Trump does not manage his own investments. Rather, Wall Street firms handle these portfolios independently of any influence from Trump or his family. The notion that the president, who willingly sacrificed his salary, entered the White House to line his own pockets is a stretch that fails to hold up to scrutiny.

CNBC