A text message allegedly sent by Ric Grenell to a Turkish billionaire promising access to President Donald Trump in exchange for a Kennedy Center donation has become a key piece of evidence in the White House investigation into a bitter feud between two of the president’s allies.
“Once the money comes to the company here, I will arrange the donation to Kennedy Centre [sic], and you’ll be joining the VIP events and get close with the administration, even with POTUS,” reads the May 3, 2025, message to Turhan Mildon, who last month married the president’s former personal attorney Alina Habba, reported Axios.
The same text allegedly told Mildon, “We need to make you the ‘American face’ down in V.” That appears to refer to Venezuela, where Grenell served as Trump’s special envoy and where Mildon has business interests.
Grenell denies sending the message. A source briefed on his thinking said he believes the British spelling of “centre” proves he didn’t write it. White House Counsel Will Scharf plans to verify the text’s digital footprint, and a source told Axios that a printout shows the same image that appears on Grenell’s smartphone contact card.
Scharf had grown skeptical of Habba’s claims early last week because she and Mildon’s attorneys were slow to provide records, according to Axios. They submitted the documents Friday.
On Oct. 9, Habba stormed into the Oval Office and accused Grenell of duping her husband into a donation that never reached the Kennedy Center, which Grenell led at the time. The New York Times previously reported that the $17.6 million wire at the center of the dispute came from an account linked to the Congolese government, not from Mildon.
According to Axios, Mildon claims he wired the money to Houston-based defense firm Texas Armament & Technology at Grenell’s direction. Roughly $5.6 million was meant for the Kennedy Center and the rest for a Congo deal.
Habba’s numbers have shifted. She first said the donation was $17 million, then about $6 million.
“Ric stole the money!” she exclaimed during the Oval Office meeting, according to one official. The official said Habba “went in there half-cocked without all the facts.”
“That doesn’t mean Ric is out of the woods,” the official added. “This looks really shady.”
Trump and Scharf then phoned Grenell, who denied everything. “There’s no way this is true. This is crazy,” he told the president, according to a source. Grenell has publicly called the claims “absurd.”
Trump and Scharf then phoned Grenell, who denied everything.
“There’s no way this is true. This is crazy,” he told the president, according to a source. Grenell has publicly called the claims “absurd,” telling Axios earlier, “I’ve never asked for one cent to be sent somewhere else pretending it was for the Kennedy Center, and I’ve never received any payment from him at all.”
Kennedy Center insiders have told the White House they often saw Mildon at exclusive events, including in the vice president’s box, next to the president’s, which suggested he was a major donor.
“Why so much access if the contribution was never paid?” one administration official asked. “There’s a lot of questions. And POTUS wants answers.”