Podcaster Joe Rogan has never been shy about speaking his mind, and on a recent episode of "The Joe Rogan Experience," he turned his attention to President Donald Trump and the family's crypto empire. Rogan, who endorsed Trump in 2024, has grown increasingly critical of the administration, and this time he's zeroing in on the money flowing through Trump's ventures.
"This government has done some s*** that no government has ever done before. And one of them is the crypto stuff. The crypto stuff's nuts," Rogan said on Thursday's episode.
He didn't stop there. Rogan alleged that Trump and his sons are involved in "weird business deals" and suggested there's "a lot of money flowing around, that you could dig in and start arresting people." He also questioned the legality of it all: "The thing about the crypto is, it's shady as f***, but it's legal. I don't know if it should be."
Rogan also took aim at Truth API, a service launched by Trump Media and Technology Group Corp. (NASDAQ: DJT), which charges up to $100,000 a month for early access to posts from Trump and other senior officials. "Who's telling him [Trump] this is a good idea?" he asked.
The White House and Trump Media did not immediately respond to requests for comment. However, the White House has previously denied any conflict of interest, with a spokesperson in July saying that all of the president's assets are held in "fully discretionary accounts" managed by "independent third-party financial institutions."
Trump's Crypto Empire Raises Questions
The Trump family's crypto involvement isn't new, but the scale is staggering. In June, reports emerged that Trump's cryptocurrency ventures had generated over $1 billion in income in 2025. That includes more than $520 million from the sale of tokens issued by World Liberty Financial, a crypto platform founded by his sons.
CIC Digital LLC, a Trump Organization affiliate behind the Official Trump (CRYPTO: TRUMP) memecoin, has collected over $635 million in royalties from "Celebration Coins," according to the report.
August brought more controversy when it was reported that World Liberty Financial had received $100 million from a man under UK police investigation for money laundering.
Warren Raises Alarm While Trump Defends
These filings have intensified conflict-of-interest concerns. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) is urging ethical safeguards in cryptocurrency legislation to prevent Trump from personally profiting. In July, Warren highlighted a survey showing that 55% of voters disapproved of Trump's $1.4 billion earnings from crypto ventures.
Trump, for his part, defended the more than $1 billion he and his family reportedly made, saying there was "nothing illegal" or wrong about it. He also noted he was involved in crypto before becoming president but didn't directly address the conflict-of-interest concerns.
Rogan's comments reflect a growing unease among some former supporters about the intersection of politics and business in the Trump administration. Whether it's the crypto billions or the Truth API fees, the questions aren't going away anytime soon.
