Trump’s PAC-funded Smithsonian portrait remains on track — despite jailhouse mugshot

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WASHINGTON — On Thursday, former President Donald Trump got a new mugshot.

His official presidential portrait, destined for a Smithsonian Institution museum, remains on track, too, Raw Story has learned.

An official for the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery confirmed to Raw Story that Trump’s litany of felony charges has not altered the museum’s plans to facilitate, unveil and display official portraits for Trump and former first lady Melania Trump.

Also unchanged: The portraits are primarily funded by a $650,000 “charitable contribution” from Trump-tied political committee Save America PAC, which a federal grand jury is investigating for fundraising off false assertions that widespread voter fraud invalidated the 2020 election.

RELATED ARTICLE: Trump PAC lauded by Smithsonian for its 'generous support': government documents

Save America PAC has meanwhile served as Trump’s chief fundraising vehicle to cover tens of millions of dollars in legal fees associated with his criminal defense. Trump is now grappling with 91 felony counts across four separate cases — two in Washington, one in New York City and one in Fulton County, Ga. Trump on Thursday posted $200,000 bail after his formal booking on 13 counts related to his alleged attempts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.

“Nothing has changed in that regard since you last reported on the matter,” said National Portrait Gallery spokesperson Concetta Duncan, adding that there is still “no set time” for the official unveiling of Trump’s portrait.

In May, Raw Story revealed that Smithsonian officials lauded Save America PAC for its “generous support” and, because they were “grateful,” promised Trump officials perks in exchange for the PAC’s money.

ALSO READ: 'A little too close for comfort': Why did the National Archives disappear this Trump photo?

"To recognize this generous support, the Smithsonian will recognize Save America on the object labels that will be displayed alongside the portraits when they are on exhibition and alongside images of the portraits on the NPG website," National Portrait Gallery Director Kim Sajet and Assistant Secretary for Advancement Robert J. Spiller wrote on May 11 to Save America PAC treasurer Bradley Crate, according to a letter obtained by Raw Story through a Freedom of Information Act request.

"In addition, Save America will be recognized in the commemorative program for, and remarks delivered at, the unveiling ceremony and provided with invitations and reserved seating for 10 guests to attend the event,” the letter to Crate continues.

The letter further states that Save America will have the "opportunity to arrange a private viewing of the portraits for up to five guests." Save America PAC would also be honored in the text of the Smithsonian's annual report.

The letter did note that Save America PAC would not be allowed to use the Smithsonian and National Portrait Gallery logos and other branding in the PAC's "products" or "product packaging," or in "advertising, promotion, publicity, or fund-raising" without Smithsonian approval.

"Just an update that we're seeing tons of angry tweets about the Trump portrait, from small and huge accounts," Smithsonian social media official Erin Blasco wrote to several colleagues. "People do not seem to understand, of course, that we have portraits of all the presidents. They're upset that we're getting a Trump portrait but also there are plenty of people upset that this counts as a 'donation,' especially since their fundraising practices have been criticized."

Among the tweets Smithsonian officials shared with each other, per their emails:

"Nice to see that @smithsonian is in bed with a Nazi pedophile wanna-be tyrant. Donation or bribe ?"

"This is f*cking infuriating."

"This is not how museums are supposed to work."

"Why would the Smithsonian even hang anything with that treasonous pig? Unless the exhibit talks about the crimes, abuse of power, and a portrait of Narcissism!"

"It's disturbing to hear that the Smithsonian is accepting so much money from Trump's Save America PAC, which has been using what Business Insider calls 'aggressive and deceptive' solicitations to squeeze money from the faithful."

The National Portrait Gallery houses a complete collection of presidential portraits.

Smithsonian officials have, however, declined to release the names of the artists who are slated to paint the Trumps’ portraits.

"Two different artists. Again, we really don’t want to get into the names," Duncan advised colleagues in an Aug. 22, 2022, email.

"We are not sharing any information about the artists at this time," National Portrait Gallery Director of Advancement Usha Subramanian emphasized in another email the same day.


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Red flags as MAGA congresswoman’s family caught cashing in on Trump program: report

A Republican lawmaker who railed against congressional self-enrichment now faces uncomfortable questions about her family's stake in a booming defense contractor.

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna's (R-FL) husband, Andrew Gamberzky, owns 10 percent of Nokturnal AI, a drone company that has landed roughly $37 million in Pentagon contracts over the past year, Mother Jones reported Thursday.

Late last year, the Florida Republican tried to force a House vote on the Restore Trust in Congress Act, which would have barred lawmakers and their immediate families from buying or trading stocks. She argued Americans deserve a Congress that works for them, "not for special interests or personal portfolios." The discharge petition fell short of the signatures it needed. Luna is now running for a third term in an increasingly competitive district.

Her 2025 financial disclosure valued Gamberzky's stake at no more than $1,000. Gamberzky also works for OKSI, the defense technology firm Luna has described as Nokturnal AI's parent company. Weeks later, Nokturnal AI, then operating as OKSI Ventures, won its first federal award, a roughly $46,000 Air Force order for a small unmanned aircraft system, Mother Jones reported.

Much bigger money soon followed. Between February and March, a consortium connecting tech firms with the Defense Department collected more than $9.2 million on a two-phase contract naming OKSI Ventures as its primary vendor with no others listed. At the time, the company was competing in the Gauntlet, a contest tied to the Pentagon's drone push that grew out of a June 2025 executive order from President Donald Trump, according to Mother Jones.

In July, the company secured another $28 million to produce Unruly, a long-range drone missile, through a Pentagon program meant to help small and nontraditional firms break into defense work. Luna voted last year for Trump's sweeping tax and spending law, which Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said bankrolls the drone effort, and for a House defense bill setting aside $400 million for that procurement program, Mother Jones noted.

Because Nokturnal AI is privately held, the stock ban Luna championed would never have touched her husband's stake. Kedric Payne of the Campaign Legal Center told Mother Jones the real issue is whether Luna "is using her official position" to boost her husband's finances. Proving a violation, he said, would take evidence she took specific action to help the company, such as lobbying an agency on its behalf.

No such evidence has surfaced, and Luna did not respond to the outlet's questions. The stake's true value likely won't be known until her 2026 disclosure is filed, but after $37 million in federal awards, Mother Jones noted it is probably worth far more than $1,000.

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Trump advisers facing firing over foreign gig buy back his favor with library gift: report

Two of President Donald Trump's top political advisers have found an unusual way back into his good graces after drawing his public wrath.

Chris LaCivita and James Blair have donated the six-figure fees they collected from a controversial consulting job in Bosnia and Herzegovina to Trump's presidential library, the New York Post reported Thursday, citing four sources. Each man earned more than $100,000 from the gig, according to the report.

Two of those sources said Trump learned about the donation secondhand rather than from LaCivita or Blair directly. But the news appears to have landed well. One source told the Post the president was "gloating" and "very braggadocious" about it in private conversations this week, while another confirmed he was happy to hear it.

It marks a sharp turn from earlier this month, when the New York Times revealed that the pair had traveled to Republika Srpska, the ethnically Serbian region of Bosnia, to advise the ruling party of Milorad Dodik ahead of the region's election. Dodik's party won. The Bosnian Serb leader has cultivated friendly relations with both Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

LaCivita co-ran Trump's 2024 campaign, and Blair served as a White House deputy chief of staff until May. Both now hold senior roles at the MAGA Inc. super PAC.

The overseas work fueled criticism that the two were cashing in on their ties to Trump while Republican congressional candidates struggled at home, though some colleagues told the Post the men stayed involved in U.S. races remotely.

Trump responded on Truth Social on Oct. 7 by distancing himself from the pair, writing that they "do not work for me, other than as outside consultants." He said he would ask them about their other clients and warned that "if there's a conflict, I will terminate them, immediately!"

Since then, there have been signs of a thaw. Blair, who led the GOP's push this year to redraw House maps in Republicans' favor, joined Trump at a South Carolina rally Wednesday. A White House official told the Post that Trump didn't seem angry with Blair and wasn't likely to blame him if Republicans suffer heavy losses in the Nov. 3 midterms, describing their discussions as businesslike and focused on tactics.

The donation won't necessarily spare the two men a tax bill. According to the Post, they will likely still owe income taxes on the money.

Trump voters abandon GOP senator over claims dad bought his seat: ‘We’re not for sale’

A Republican senator with a family fortune is losing Trump voters in his own deep-red state to a blue-collar challenger.

Sen. Pete Ricketts (R-NE), worth more than $200 million, faces a stiff test from independent Dan Osborn, an industrial mechanic who has turned the senator's inherited wealth into the centerpiece of his campaign, The New York Times reported Thursday.

Ricketts is an heir to the TD Ameritrade fortune built by his father, Joe Ricketts. Osborn's ads and social media posts paint the senator as a pampered rich kid whose dad bought him his seat in Washington. Osborn, by contrast, reported making about $108,000 last year at a heating and air conditioning company.

"Nebraska has to make this decision and tell the rest of the country we're not for sale," Osborn said after a town hall in Tekamah earlier this month.

That message is landing with some voters who backed President Donald Trump. Sean Dell, a machinist in Seward, voted for Trump twice but told The Times a hard look at his own finances pushed him toward Osborn. Politicians who treat workers like they aren't worth it are "what gets me going," he said.

Angel Chavez, a plumber in Columbus who calls himself a conservative, also voted for Trump in 2024. Raising five children has squeezed his household so hard that he said his family has "had to step down to the lower class." He plans to back Osborn.

Michael Nguyen, a machine technician in Lincoln, has never cast a ballot. He plans to vote for the first time this year, for Osborn. Of wealthy politicians like Ricketts, he asked, "Why would they care about what I'm going through?"

The Ricketts campaign is hitting back. "Senator Ricketts delivers for Nebraskans; Dan Osborn lies to them," spokesman Max Oberg said. The campaign has attacked Osborn on border security and accused his family of pocketing more than $500,000 from his campaign, though his latest financial disclosure showed he and his wife took in roughly $61,000 from the campaign and his super PAC.

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