Base Group faces scrutiny over Trump ties as aluminum affiliate fights US tariffs

U.S. Democratic senators are probing a $2 million payment made last year by Korean company Base Group to a Trump family business, raising concerns that it may have been intended to influence a trade dispute involving the company’s aluminum affiliate. Sens. Elizabeth Warren, Richard Blumenthal and Andy Kim sent a letter to Base Group Chairman Kim Sung-jip seeking an explanation of the payment, according to the letter released by the lawmakers. The payment was disclosed in U.S. President Donald Trump’s 2025 financial disclosure, released in late June. It was described as being related to a “letter of intent” and a “nonrefundable development fee.” The senators said the “secretive nature and timing” of the payment raised concerns about “pay-to-play politics and bribery.” “The secretive nature and timing of this massive payment raises questions about whether Base Group is making direct payments to President Trump’s companies in an attempt to influence Commerce Department proceedings or otherwise secure lucrative tariff exemptions,” the lawmakers wrote. Base Group has