Protean Therapy

A Nation Obsessed With Financial Gain:

President Trump recently agreed to end his lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in exchange for a $1.776 billion anti-weaponization legal fund created to compensate individuals targeted by the Department of Justice (Phillips, 2026; Roebuck et al., 2026).

The fund is the result of a lawsuit by Trump against organizations he oversees and will be distributed by a five-person team appointed by the head of the Department of Justice, currently Trump-appointee Todd Blanche (Phillips, 2026; Roebuck et al., 2026).

President Trump is using his power to add anywhere from two to six billion dollars ($2B-$6B) to his net worth (Center for American Progress n.d., House Oversight Committee, n.d.; Vandewalker, Petry, & Weiner, 2026). These net worth increases may include $187 million from a business deal with Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan (De Boer, 2026; Khan-Mullins, 2026) and hundreds of millions of dollars worth of stock trades in companies whose leaders Trump hangs out with (Jansen, 2026; Trump, 2026). This is all coming from a President who reportedly donates his $400,000 salary (Kochi, 2026; Fichera & Tolhurst, 2019).

The U.S. economy, in which there are concerns about increasing inflation, does not appear to be faring much better than the government (PBS News, 2026; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2026).

So, with corruption and inflation on the rise, where should you be investing your precious time and resources?

The Social Capital Solution:

Here’s why your best friends may be your best bet…

(1) Money is worth what it is invested in.

Financial capital is only valuable because other people are using it to benefit you. You bet on people and businesses that will pay you back. But when inflation deteriorates the value of the businesses you’re vested in, you may never get paid.

If leverage (i.e. debt) is a magic trick that makes money appear, inflation is the trick that makes it disappear. When that happens, you need hard assets (e.g. food, land, buildings, natural resources, etc.). But who will help you hold those assets?

(2) Investments you can’t hold are worthless.

Severe economic downturns are often accompanied by upheavals which may include higher crime rates and violence. Papers, rocks, and stocks cannot help you defend your assets, but people can. Stuff won’t convince people to protect you in tough times, but social capital will.

(3) Investments don’t remember but best friends do.

Social capital builds community through relationship. Social capital is reciprocal altruism. If you do a favor for a true friend, they will never forget it. When a best friend sees you struggling, they will show up.

People who enjoy being around you will keep you around. If you are a pain to be around, you may be abandoned during an upheaval. Friends and family are sources of social capital that help you thrive, or at least survive, through upheaval.

Do you think President Trump understands that? Do you understand it?

Surviving the Next Economic Downturn:

Cash can’t save you but best friends can. Hold onto your best investments, but don’t forget about your best friends. If you want to survive a serious economic downturn, or just enjoy life more, you need to know who your true friends are.

And, if you think about it, you probably do. What’s stopping you from writing down who your best friends are and spending more time with them? If you’re having a hard time knowing who your best friends are, stay tuned for the next protean therapy report…

Sources:

Center for American Progress. (n.d.). Trump’s Take: Cash and gifts received by Trump over the past 561 days. americanprogress.org. Retrieved May 21, 2026, from https://www.americanprogress.org/feature/trumps-take/

De Boer, A. (2026, February 10). Trump Family Pockets $187M from UAE’s $500M Crypto Stake in World Liberty Financial! Yahoo Finance. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/trump-family-pockets-187m-uae-173735512.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAACrtnKhHLudu1S2DgPiqUpK6j0bPXgDSzTd0xVMR_ge0b0j8349rmNZGXh546736D7VERHBeDe3vZFhcQcYmCqrlsNSbiOeSRkE7tHvhXfClSwgYT3WvQf–THoqIK1P7_ZbrZlg8T4NgpzqtkO1sQL3Fh9uunMcC1s5lPM4eDTy

Fichera, A. & Tolhurst, A. (2019, February 14). False stories revive claim about Trump salary donation. FactCheck.org. https://www.factcheck.org/2018/08/false-stories-revive-claim-about-trump-salary-donation/

House Oversight Committee (Democrats). (n.d.). Trump Family Digital Grift Wealth Tracker | Resources | The U.S. House Committee on Oversight. oversightdemocrats.house.gov. Retrieved May 21, 2026, from https://oversightdemocrats.house.gov/trump-family-corruption-tracker

Jansen, B. (2026, May 18). Trump trades millions in Nvidia, Apple, Microsoft while promoting companies. USA TODAY. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2026/05/18/trump-trades-stocks-nvidia-apple-microsoft/90142106007/

Khan-Mullins, K. (2026, February 2). Why the Trump-UAE crypto deal made no financial Sense—For the Emiratis. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/kylemullins/2026/02/02/why-the-trump-uae-crypto-deal-made-no-financial-sense-for-the-emiratis/

Kochi, S. (2019, February 2). Fact check: Trump donated portions of presidential salary to agencies, contrary to viral claim. USA TODAY. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2023/02/02/fact-check-partly-false-claim-trump-tax-returns-salary-donation/11132712002/

PBS News. (2026, May 16). Trump returns to the U.S. from China with pressure over rising inflation. Retrieved May 21, 2026, from https://www.pbs.org/newshour/economy/trump-returns-to-the-u-s-from-china-with-pressure-over-rising-inflation

Phillips, A. (2026, May 19). Trump’s extraordinary $1.8 billion legal fund to his allies: Why the enormous fund is so controversial. The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2026/05/19/trumps-extraordinary-18-billion-legal-fund-his-allies/

Roebuck, J., Berman, M., & Stein, P. (2026, May 18). Trump’s deal to drop suit against IRS creates $1.8B ‘Anti-Weaponization fund’: The deal, laid out in a document signed by acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, could result in taxpayer payouts to the president’s allies. The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2026/05/18/trump-will-end-10-billion-lawsuit-against-irs-over-leaked-tax-records/

Trump, D. J. (2026, May 8). Executive branch periodic transaction report (OGE Form 278-T). U.S. Office of Government Ethics. https://extapps2.oge.gov/201/Presiden.nsf/PAS+Index/405E4EC4E27BE8D185258DF7002DD1C0/$FILE/Trump%2C%20Donald%20J.-05.08.2026-278T(2).pdf

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (2026). Economic news release: Consumer Price Index Summary – April 2026. In bls.gov. Retrieved May 21, 2026, from https://www.bls.gov/news.release/cpi.nr0.htm

Vandewalker, I., Petry, E., & Weiner, D. (2026, May 19). Money in Politics Roundup — February 2026. Brennan Center for Justice. Retrieved May 21, 2026, from https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/money-politics-roundup-february-2026