Adin Ross Accused of Breaking Campaign Rules by Giving Trump Gifts

Jacob Hale

❘ Published: 2024-08-06T11:22:01

On August 5, Adin Ross hosted an interview with U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump on his Kick channel, but the streamer was accused of violating Federal Election Campaign (FEC) regulations during the broadcast.

Just days after speaking and being interviewed at the National Association of Black Journalists, the former president arrived at a more intimate event when he agreed to face the world of live streaming alongside Adin Ross.

While it was a rather laid-back experience, some eagle-eyed observers were quick to point out that Ross may have broken FEC rules when he gave Trump not one, but two very expensive gifts.

Adin gave Trump a Rolex Day Date watch, which costs more than $30,000 new, and a Tesla Cybertruck that featured a viral photo of Trump standing defiantly after the July 13 assassination attempt.

The combined value of these gifts likely exceeded $100,000, and in the case of gifts to a presidential candidate, this could be a violation of FEC rules.

The FEC states that individuals can contribute a maximum of $3,300 to a campaign, and donations count toward that limit.

Brendan Fischer, deputy executive director of Documented, a watchdog group that studies money in politics, told Rolling Stone that the gifts “were given to Trump as part of his role as a candidate and because he’s running for office, and therefore they are considered contributions” to his campaign.

Fischer added: “I suspect that when Trump talks to his lawyers, we will get the message that he is rejecting gifts or giving them to charity.”

Karoline Leavitt, a spokeswoman for the Trump campaign, also told Rolling Stone that the campaign “will submit an advisory opinion to the FEC for guidance on how to handle these gifts.”

Streamer Adin Ross gives Trump a Rolex — it looks a bit like a gold Daydate with a green dial, which is certainly over the FEC’s $3,300 deposit limit. photo: twitter.com/MQt5DVRqfr

— Will Sommer (@willsommer) August 5, 2024

The watch and car would be considered illegal gifts, but Trump could formally reject the gifts, and Adin could plead ignorance of the law. Fischer said it was unlikely the FEC would “spend too much time on this.”

The broadcast became Adin’s most-watched stream yet, peaking at over 583,000 viewers—a small margin that nearly matched a $100,000 bet Ross made with Kick’s CEO that the broadcast would peak at over 600,000 viewers.

This isn’t the first time a president has had to turn down a gift of a watch. President Nixon did the same in 1969, when Omega gave him a gold Speedmaster after NASA astronauts flew to the moon with the classic model.