Donald Trump confronted longtime ally Richard Grenell from the Oval Office after being briefed on allegations that he mishandled millions of dollars linked to the Kennedy Center, Our News Outlet can exclusively report.
The president became visibly angry last Friday as Alina Habba, his former personal attorney, outlined the claims during a meeting at the White House, according to three sources familiar with the discussion.
Habba told Trump that Grenell, whom he appointed to oversee the Kennedy Center at the beginning of his second term, allegedly failed to deliver a $5.6 million donation from her new husband, 29-year-old Turkish billionaire Turhan Mildon.
One White House official said Trump was “pretty worked up” as Habba presented her allegations and insisted on immediate answers.
The official said the president’s frustration was directed less at the accusation itself than at his desire to establish exactly what had happened.
White House counsel Will Scharf and Trump’s personal secretary, Natalie Harp, were also present while Habba described her concerns, the sources said.
Once Habba finished, Trump instructed Scharf to investigate the matter.
“Take this seriously, figure it out, and come back to me ASAP,” Trump said, according to accounts provided by the three sources.
The allegations reportedly stunned Trump enough that he called Grenell during the meeting and demanded an explanation, according to a source familiar with the conversation.
Alina Habba, Trump’s former personal attorney, presented the allegations against Grenell during a meeting in the Oval Office last Friday
Grenell, 60, led the Kennedy Center from February 2025 until resigning in March following a turbulent tenure
Grenell denied wrongdoing during the call, the source said. The source added that Grenell and Habba did not speak directly.
“It’s absurd. I’ve never asked for one cent to be sent somewhere else pretending it was for the Kennedy Center and I’ve never received any payment from him at all,” Grenell said in a statement to Our News Outlet.
“Make [Mildon] give proof to what he is claiming he gave,” Grenell added.
Grenell declined to discuss the details of his conversation with Trump when asked for comment.
Mildon did not respond to Our News Outlet’s request for comment.
Grenell, 60, served as Kennedy Center president from February 2025 until his departure in March, ending a tenure marked by turmoil.
Habba alleged that Grenell persuaded Mildon in spring 2025 to combine a $5.6 million Kennedy Center donation with a $17.6 million payment tied to a separate business transaction involving a U.S. company. She claimed the donation was never received by the center, Axios first reported.
According to the report, Habba’s attorneys possess documents reviewed by Axios that they say show Grenell solicited a Kennedy Center contribution from Mildon but directed it to a private company in spring 2025.
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The purpose of the business transaction remains unclear. Axios described it only as a deal involving a U.S. company.
Habba married her mustachioed Turkish businessman Mildon in a glittering Waldorf Astoria wedding last month
The loved-up couple were spotted arriving at a ritzy eatery in Palm Beach, Florida last month before their wedding
Scharf is now running the internal inquiry out of the counsel’s office
Kennedy Center records show no donation from Mildon anywhere near that size, only a $270,000 pledge he still owed and paid this week on Tuesday.
Mildon never checked whether the money had arrived, believing it had because he was treated as a VIP at the center, according to Axios.
Our News Outlet has contacted the Kennedy Center for comment. Habba declined to comment to Our News Outlet.
Trump directed Habba to turn every piece of evidence over to Scharf.
By Wednesday afternoon, Mildon’s lawyers had delivered text message evidence against Grenell to the White House Counsel’s Office, sources say.
The president gave no hard deadline but is likely to ask Scharf for an update within the week, the official said.
Our News Outlet has contacted Scharf for comment.
Mildon, 29, and Habba, 42, met at a Kennedy Center event in late 2025 and began dating this year.
They got engaged quickly and were married at New York’s Waldorf Astoria last month in a lavish $10 million bash filled with MAGA stars, administration officials and foreign leaders.
By Wednesday afternoon, Mildon’s lawyers had delivered the text messages and other evidence against Grenell to the White House Counsel’s Office, sources say
Grenell, 60, ran the Kennedy Center from February 2025 until he stepped down in March after a tumultuous tenure
Scharf, who took over the White House Counsel’s Office on September 1, was among the wedding guests, alongside Attorney General Todd Blanche and FBI Director Kash Patel.
Grenell, once a friend of the couple, was not at the wedding.
The White House did not respond to Our News Outlet’s request for comment.
