Democrats probe Russian-funded wedding parties for Donald Trump's son

Democrats in the US Congress have launched an investigation into reports that a Russian oligarch paid hundreds of thousands of dollars for the wedding celebrations of President Donald Trump's son earlier this year.The Democrats' move comes on the heels of an article revealing that the wedding festivities of Donald Trump Jr were funded by a wealthy Russian businessman with strong ties to President Vladimir Putin and the Russian government. ProPublica reported that Umar Kremlev, a wealthy Russian businessman and president of the International Boxing Association (IBA), paid for lavish wedding festivities in the Bahamas in May."Why is a Russian oligarch and friend of Vladimir Putin financially supporting the president's son?" US representative Robert Garcia wrote in a social media post on Tuesday, local time.Umar Kremlev was honoured by Vladimir Putin for his services to boxing in April. (Reuters: Kristina Solovyova)"What does Umar Kremlev expect in return for funding this three-day wedding in the Bahamas?" Mr Garcia is the senior Democrat on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.He is expected to chair the panel if Democrats win a majority in the House of Representatives in November's midterm elections.A representative for Don Jr declined to comment.Bettina Anderson revealed on social media that Umar Kremlev had funded the post-wedding celebrations. (Reuters: Kevin Lamarque)His wife, Bettina Trump, said in an Instagram post on Monday that Mr Kremlev was a friend who had extended an "extraordinarily generous wedding gift," stressing that Kremlev had paid for two after-parties, not the wedding itself.Mr Kremlev and the IBA did not respond to requests for comment on Tuesday.The president, who did not attend his son's wedding, said in a statement that he did not know Mr Kremlev.He added that the wedding controversy was "not a big deal!"US Attorney-General Todd Blanche also brushed aside the potential conflict of interest when asked about it, saying he would not investigate."The president doesn't know who this person is," he said."I like that it's fun to talk about this issue and the rhetoric around it, but I think all the relevant people involved, the president and his kids have already addressed it."Mr Garcia and other leading House Democrats have already been gearing up for probes into Mr Trump, his family and ethics questions that have arisen since the start of the president's second term in January 2025.Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer of New York on Tuesday called the wedding arrangement "so corrupt, so venal, so endangering our national security".In a speech to the Senate, Senator Schumer added, "You're dealing with a Russian oligarch, not just a cousin who's giving you a gift."Sometimes a wedding gift is a bribe from a foreign autocrat."In the first year of his second presidential term that began in January 2025, Mr Trump reported $US2.2 billion ($3.1 billion) in revenue, with more than half coming from cryptocurrency ventures.In the previous year, his personal income was reported at $US622 million.Reuters/ABC