A $620 million loan that the Pentagon gave to a small North Carolina startup linked to the president’s son, Donald Trump Jr., was requested by Peter Navarro, ProPublica reported. Navarro is an adviser to President Donald Trump, as well as a friend of his son’s.
Although the Pentagon was considering funding dozens of companies at the time, Vulcan Elements was the only one initiated by a top aide to the president, an official not authorized to speak publicly told ProPublica. Trump Jr.’s venture capital firm took a stake in Vulcan about three months before the deal was announced.
Defense officials asked Pentagon staff to move at an unusually rapid pace, one person involved in the deal said, and they worked late nights to get the loan through in weeks.
“The call came from the White House: We have to get this done,” the person said to ProPublica.
The loan was part of the Pentagon’s effort to fund companies that could reduce the United States’ dependency on China’s critical mineral supply chains. Vulcan’s valuation estimates grew after the deal was announced.
A White House spokesperson said in a statement to ProPublica that the administration is working “in the best interest of the American people.” Trump Jr.’s spokesperson told the news outlet that the president’s son doesn’t discuss companies he has invested in with federal government officials, and that he didn’t speak to Navarro about Vulcan.
“No company receives preferential treatment,” a Pentagon spokesperson said. “Outside affiliations, investors, or political connections play absolutely no role in the Department’s funding decisions.”
