DISCLAIMER: This article was first published in December 2025
After hosting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at Mar-a-Lago, Donald Trump turned a serious dinner into another strange scene.
Zelensky was in Florida to talk about the war with Russia. The fighting is now close to its fourth year. Big issues were on the table.
Then Trump shifted his attention to the press.
He joked that reporters could have some of the food. He asked if they would “consider that a bribe.” He said it might stop them from writing bad stories.
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One journalist accepted the offer. Trump told an aide to take the press outside and serve them lunch.
Reporters got steak, coconut shrimp, fries, cookies, and water with Trump’s name on it. Online, people pointed out the obvious: even the drinks were another chance for Trump to profit from taxpayers.
The White House pool says it was served Trump-branded water for lunch pic.twitter.com/pFEhk3w39T
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) December 28, 2025
And how much did Trump charge taxpayers for his branded water?
— Janice Hough (@leftcoastbabe) December 28, 2025
It would be nice if the journalists could get us a receipt on what Trump charged for those meals so we can see how he screws the American people by up charging these items and taking money AWAY from the people!
— Joyful Laughs (@SaysNoToCults) December 29, 2025
One of his longest-running rackets is selling his own water to his businesses.
He marks it up, then they mark it up again, then he charges it to the government at $8 per bottle for basically tap water.— StickyBunny (@skullisland1919) December 28, 2025
And Trump charged the lunch to the gov’t. He profits personally on everything he does.
— CHEERS! 🍻 🥂💙 (@cheersbrandy) December 28, 2025
Trump later said the food would not help and claimed reporters would still write worse stories about him, which is something he has said many times before.
This kind of behavior is familiar, since Trump often talks about the media as enemies, regularly insults reporters, and questions their honesty in public.
The timing also stood out, especially since many reporters had cut short their Christmas break to cover the meeting, something Trump openly acknowledged. That made the moment feel less casual and more intentional, even if it was presented as humor in the room.
Zelensky later said progress was made during the talks, stating that security guarantees were fully agreed and that a broader deal was close.
Even so, Ukraine continues to refuse to give up any land, while Russia still occupies parts of eastern Ukraine, leaving the core conflict unresolved.
Featured image via X screengrab
