Much has been made of people in the military, White House, and even the guy running the teleprompter making a quick buck off their inside knowledge in the prediction markets. In some instances, particularly when not a blood or marital relation to the president, using inside information to make money has been frowned upon. But then, it wasn’t officially sanctioned, with the boss getting his taste.

Truth Social, the Trumpian version of twitter which is mostly owned by Trump, has decided that if others are going to monetize inside knowledge, why shouldn’t Trump. After all, is he not the mother lode of inside information, prime for market manipulation even by a twit with ALL CAPS and misspellings by such matters as the on again, off again, war-not-war? Sure, the United States is burning through billions, but why should that mean the president can’t enjoy a few bucks off the grift?

Trump ​Media & Technology Group (DJTO) has unveiled a paid-for, licensed data feed that will give banks and trading firms “the fastest” access to posts from influential Truth ‌Social accounts, such as President Donald Trump’s, whose posts often move global markets.

The product, called “Truth API,” will deliver posts from the 10 most influential accounts to customers at a significantly faster pace than a regular push notification on the Truth Social platform, a spokesperson said.

There is truth to the claim that Trump, whose “rule” extends beyond Executive Orders to government by twit, moves markets. Announce a tariff, markets crash. Announce a war, markets crash. Announce a company endorsed by Trump, the company’s stock crashes. Anyway, you get the picture.

The feed is designed for organizations “most impacted by the cost of a delay in information”, such as algorithmic trading firms, the company said in a statement. “Until ​now… firms that prioritize tracking influential Truth posts have relied on manual monitoring. Truth API closes the gap.”

The move is TMTG’s first step into data licensing, ​and opens up a new revenue stream for the company, which has faced challenges in scaling its media business amid stiff competition from ⁠larger social media firms.

“Markets already move on Truth Social posts … As adoption grows, we expect Truth API to become a meaningful, ongoing source of revenue for the company,” TMTG’s ​interim CEO Kevin McGurn said.

In other words, this advance feed of Trump’s twits will enable Wall Street firms to use algorithmic trades to make a killing on information that those who aren’t willing to pony up the fee won’t know about until after it’s too late. And Truth Social, 41% owned by Trump’s revocable trust, administered by Trump’s boys, which hasn’t been doing very well in the market since its IPO, will magically have a very lucrative revenue stream. Is this legal?

Robert Frenchman, a partner at the Dynamis law firm in New York who has defended clients in federal government trading probes, said public companies had to be careful about how they disclose information on such platforms. But he said the platforms were allowed to offer clients early access even if it disadvantaged some market participants.

“It certainly does not seem fair, ​but yes, a tech platform can tier its ​distribution of information without violating federal ⁠securities laws,” Frenchman said.

Granted, it certainly emits the stench of insider trading, together with the unpleasant odor of Trump using the presidency to make money for himself and his family at the expense of the public. But is Frenchman right that selling tiered access to Truth Social doesn’t violate securities law against insider trading when it enables firms to trade on non-public information, or is it public information that most of us can’t afford to pay for? In fairness, if you’re not using algorithmic trading, it’s unlikely that you would be able to use the information at the speed with which it would be necessary to take advantage of the advance information anyway.

Up to now, there has been little indication that the MAGA faithful have much of a problem with Trump profiting off the presidency, even as they suck wind with the ever-increasing cost of gas, food, housing and healthcare. Has he gone too far this time? Is this just too flagrant a grift to go unnoticed?

And even if it’s legal, is it so offensive and deeply wrong that Trump’s presidential pronouncements on Truth Social, or “Truths” as he calls them because it sounds much better than twits, cross a line that the public won’t accept? Or will this just be another scam, like bibles, watches, sneakers, cellphones and billion-dollar gifts to the Trump crypto boys, that’s shrugged off by a public that has grown inured to Trump profiting off the presidency?

*Tuesday Talk rules apply.