Fox News host Laura Ingraham is joining forces with Donald Trump Jr. in a new business venture, sparking plenty of chatter about conflicts of interest given her long record of criticizing Hunter Biden’s business dealings on air.
According to a registration filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Oct. 17, first reported by Bloomberg, Ingraham and Don Jr. are listed as directors of Colombier Acquisition Corp. III, a special-purpose acquisition company (SPAC) based in the Cayman Islands. The SPAC aims to raise $260 million through an initial public offering to acquire another company.
The CEO of the new venture is Omeed Malik, co-founder of 1789 Capital, a MAGA-aligned investment fund. Don Jr., 47, joined 1789 Capital after his father won the 2024 election, saying he preferred to focus on private enterprise rather than serve in his father’s second administration.
Ingraham’s decision to work alongside Don Jr. has drawn scrutiny since she continues to host The Ingraham Angle on Fox News, where she frequently covers stories about Trump and his family. Left-leaning watchdog group Media Matters raised concerns that her financial ties to a MAGA-themed company could influence her coverage.
The group warned that she could benefit financially from MAGA’s success — or be pressured to stay loyal to it. Media Matters also noted that Ingraham has been tapped to chair the company’s compensation committee, which would give her influence over executive pay.
The Trump family’s business and political worlds have become increasingly intertwined since Donald Trump returned to the White House. By May, at least two dozen current or former Fox News staffers had joined his administration, including several in cabinet-level roles. Trump also appointed Ingraham and fellow Fox host Maria Bartiromo to the Kennedy Center board and named Mark Levin to his Homeland Security Advisory Council.
Meanwhile, Trump’s daughter-in-law, Lara Trump, got her own Fox News weekend show earlier this year — the first time a sitting president’s family member has hosted a regular TV program, according to Reuters.
Ingraham, 62, has been one of Fox’s most vocal critics of Hunter Biden, who was mentioned in at least 164 episodes of The Ingraham Angle between January 2023 and Trump’s 2024 victory, according to Media Matters.
In one December 2023 segment, she accused the Biden administration of helping Hunter “cover for his father’s involvement” in his business affairs. “He may not care about the border, or fentanyl, or inflation, forget it,” she said. “But Joe is very much locked in on solving Hunter’s legal troubles, which are a mortal threat to his reelection.”
She claimed that Biden “knew that his son was getting paid millions of dollars from foreign entities” and that “those entities expected something in return,” later adding, “The White House is helping quarterback Hunter’s defense. It had to.”
Hunter Biden has repeatedly denied his father had any financial role in his business ventures, saying, “Not in my law work, my Burisma board position, my Chinese partnership, my investments, or my art.”
The Trump sons, meanwhile, continue to run the Trump Organization, which has major business ties in countries including Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Indonesia. The family’s global dealings made headlines again after Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto was caught on a hot mic at a summit asking President Trump to arrange a meeting with Eric Trump.
“I’ll have Eric call you,” Trump replied. Eric later confirmed the exchange and praised his company’s upcoming hotel project in Indonesia, calling it “one of the most substantial projects in the country.”
As questions swirl over ethics, influence, and media loyalty, Ingraham’s latest move with Don Jr. blurs the lines even further between conservative politics, Fox News, and Trump family business interests.