Venmo accounts for Congress members, Trump admin officials show transactions, friends lists

Public Venmo accounts for Congress members, Trump administration officials and journalists show payment transactions and friends lists, revealing connections and personal information.

The discoveries made by the news outlet NOTUS, which looked at the money-transactions app accounts of more than 50 lawmakers, roughly 20 former members of Congress and more than three dozen Trump administration officials and nominees.

Most lawmakers and White House staff had their Venmo friends lists public, with some also publicly listing their payment transactions, according to the NOTUS story published Tuesday. 

After NOTUS contacted them about their public Venmo accounts, some made their transactions private. However, many didn't also make their past transactions private, which is a separate Venmo setting, or privatize their friends lists.

Venmo transactions from Rep. Steve Womack, R-Ark., showed his bets on major golf championships. Rep. Greg Landsman, D-Ohio, paid his sister for “Some concert I didn’t even go to,” according to a Venmo transaction. Rep. Abraham Hamadeh, R-Ariz., received a payment for “#HookahForFlake.”

Rep. Jennifer Kiggans, R-Va., paid a woman for “House cleaning” in 2023, including her home address and “Thank you sooooo much!!” in the transaction description.

From the Trump administration, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller, trade adviser Peter Navarro, press secretary Karoline Leavitt, deputy chief of staff James Blair, U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Alina Habba, and White House staff secretary Will Scharf all have public friends lists.

Navarro is Venmo friends with conservartive media personallity Tucker Carlson. The more than 500 publicly listed friends on Carlson's account include Jenna Ellis, the lawyer and Trump co-defendant who pleaded guilty in the Georgia election case; James O’Keefe, the founder of Project Veritas; conservative commentator Benny Johnson; and right-wing activist Laura Loomer. Venmo friends on Loomer's account include far-right commentators Milo Yiannopoulos and Nick Fuentes.

CNN, Politico, Semafor, and The New York Times reporters were included in the friends lists of lawmakers and White House officials.

Former Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., is Venmo friends with former GOP Reps. Aaron Schock of Illinois, Frank Guinta of New Hampshire, Jack Kingston of Georgia, Jon Runyan of New Jersey, Mark Sanford of South Carolina, Mike Gallagher of Wisconsin, Patrick McHenry of North Carolina, Renee Ellmers of North Carolina, Sean Duffy of Wisconsin, Steve Stivers of Ohio, and Tim Griffin of Arkansas. Sen. Ruben Gallego, D-Arizona, and former Major League Baseball player Aubrey Huff are also on Hunter's friends list.

Surgeon general nominee Janette Nesheiwat, ambassador to Canada nominee Pete Hoekstra, and secretary of the Army nominee Daniel Driscoll all have public Venmo accounts.