Critics: Trump's Freedom250 is 'pay-for-play,' lacks transparency

As America prepares to celebrate its 250^th anniversary, some have raised worries about transparency and politicization they say is hanging over the organization President Donald Trump created to support his plans for the celebration.  

Congressional Democrats and watchdog groups have in recent days raised concerns that the group, Freedom 250, created as a subsidiary of the National Park Foundation, lacks transparency, skirts federal rules and allows companies and wealthy individuals to buy access to the president’s office.  

Members of the House of Representatives on Feb. 10 probed leaders of the Park Foundation during a public hearing after The New York Times reported allegations that Freedom 250 is trading access to Trump for donations. 

In exchange for donations ranging from $1 million to nearly $10 million, groups giving to Freedom 250 were offered an array of perks, including an "invitation to a private Freedom 250 thank you reception hosted by President Donald J. Trump," and speaking opportunities at major events, according to the Times. 

And in a letter sent Feb. 11, Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., requested the Trump administration provide transparency about Freedom 250’s donors, fundraising practices and governance structure.   

“Linking private contributions – explicitly or implicitly – to invitations to White House events, photo ops, ceremonial roles, or other forms of access unavailable to the general public, raises serious concerns about the auctioning of government activities,” Schiff wrote to Trump's Chief of Staff, Susie Wiles.

The White House did not directly respond to emailed questions about whether it plans to comply with Schiff's request for information and criticized the California senator for wanting to "trash" the U.S.

"It’s a complete disgrace that Pencil-Neck Adam Schiff is willing to trash the United States of America during its semi quincentennial celebration simply because he hates President Trump," White House spokesperson Davis Ingle said in an emailed statement. 

Is exchanging access for donations illegal?

Scott Greytak, deputy executive director of Transparency International U.S., said the key legal question at play is whether Freedom 250 accepted donations for the president’s 250^th projects and in exchange Trump enacted preferential policies for those companies.

“Is it normal for high-dollar donors to get invited to receptions? Totally,” Greytak said. “If they get a logo replacement, invited to an event, that is not illegal.” 

For instance, America250, a separate nonpartisan group established by Congress more than a decade ago to plan programming around the anniversary, has also solicited donors using sponsorship packages, according to documents obtained by USA TODAY.  

For as little as $500,000, donors to America250 can become a "Liberty Partner" and receive "invitations and reserved seating" at events, the sponsorship opportunities suggest. For $5,000,000 donors receive a seat on the America250 Advisory Council, invites to events with "top leaders and influencers" and recognition at receptions "attended by Members of Congress, administration officials, Supreme Court Justices, and Governors," among other perks. 

Legally, for bribery to occur, Greytak said there would need to be “a nexus,” or direct connection, between the donations and policy changes.  

Ethical questions around grand gifts, like donations to Trump’s 250^th celebration or the White House ballroom, influencing who has access and power in Washington are cloudier, Greytak suggested.

Watchdog groups raise concerns about donations to Freedom 250

Among Democrats and government watchdog groups' chief concerns with Freedom 250 is the group’s lack of transparency, inherent in its structure.  

Some watchdog groups, including the Center for Western Priorities, have also expressed concern that taxpayer dollars are being used to push a conservative, right-wing view of America during the commemoration. They've questioned whether Freedom 250 is comingling those public funds with private donations. 

Trump created Freedom 250 in December as a subsidiary of the National Park Foundation to fund his vision for the country’s milestone birthday, outside of efforts being planned by America250. The organization describes itself as nonpartisan.

Freedom 250 has so far listed several sponsors on its website, including Exxon Mobile, Mastercard, Deloitte, Palantir and IndyCar, among others. But Schiff and other Democrats have suggested the organizations' opaque structure could allow other organizations to donate without oversight. 

In his letter, Schiff said Freedom 250 appeared "to operate alongside, and in some cases overlap with, America250," making it "imperative" that the public understand how it was operating and accepting donations.

'No transparency'

Freedom 250 and America250 are nonprofit organizations and not subject to the same financial disclosure requirements as federal agencies. 

Jeff Reinbold, president and CEO of the Park Foundation, told members of Congress that the organization would disclose donors to Freedom 250 in its 2027 tax filings, though it would not include those who requested anonymity.  

In response to worries floated by some members of Congress, Freedom 250 spokesperson Rachel Reisner told USA TODAY the group had not and was not taking foreign donations.     

Donors to Freedom 250 can ask to remain anonymous. And the organization may accept any gift, even if it is “subject to beneficial interests of private persons,” so long as it benefits the National Park Service in some way, according to the Park’s Foundation’s 1967 charter. 

Last year, Trump added Chris LaCavita, a former adviser to his 2024 campaign, and Meredith O'Rourke, one of his key fundraisers, to the Park Foundation board.

Tim Whitehouse, the executive director of the group Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, said during the congressional hearing that he's concerned about the way Freedom 250 accepts donations.

“The issue is there's no accountability. There's no transparency. There’s no guardrails. There’s no oversight,” Whitehouse said.

Schiff in his letter to Trump's chief of staff requested information on O’Rourke’s role in 250^th fundraising efforts and a complete list of all individual and corporate donors, among other information.  

Taxpayer dollars at stake 

In addition to raising private donations, Freedom 250 and America250 are sharing taxpayer funds. Reinbold said the Park Foundation holds taxpayer money and donations given to Freedom 250, almost like a bank, and disperses it at the request of the Park Service. 

Congress in 2025 allocated $150 million for the Department of the Interior to distribute, as it saw fit, to celebrate the country’s 250th anniversary.

The agency allocated $50 million of that to America250, and $100 million to Freedom 250, according to a source familiar with the transaction. To date, America250 has received only $25 million, less than it had expected to receive by this time, according to the source. 

Freedom 250 has so far spent $10 million retrofitting six tractor-trailer trucks with mobile history exhibits created in partnership with Hillsdale College, a private conservative Christian school, and PragerU, a conservative media organization. It allocated more than $270,000 to Event Strategies Inc., the group that planned the Jan. 6 rally held on the Ellipse in Washington, D.C. 

Karissa Waddick, who covers America's 250th anniversary for USA TODAY, can be reached at [email protected].

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