Syrian Businessman's Billion-Dollar Bets and Trump Family Entanglements in Post-Assad Syria

The Khayyat Brothers' Syrian Reconstruction Play

In the months following Bashar al-Assad's fall in late 2024, a remarkable convergence of business ambition and geopolitical leverage emerged from Syria's reconstruction. The Al-Khayyat brothers—Syrian-born businessmen with deep ties to the Middle East—have positioned themselves at the center of Syria's post-war economic revival, securing more than $12 billion in government-sponsored reconstruction contracts. But their ambitions extended well beyond traditional rebuilding projects. Mohamad Al-Khayyat, the most visible of the three brothers, began pitching an audacious development vision to American lawmakers: a luxury coastal complex featuring a cruise ship port, polo club, Bugatti showroom, and world-class golf course in a country still bearing the scars of devastating civil conflict.

"A cruise ship port. A polo club. A Bugatti car showroom. A world-class golf course. All in a country that had just recently been torn apart by civil war."

Last summer, Representative Joe Wilson, a Republican from South Carolina and former real estate lawyer, received a video call from the Khayyats outlining these proposals. Wilson, a vocal proponent of lifting U.S. sanctions on Syria, listened carefully as the brothers explained their vision. What made this pitch particularly noteworthy was its explicit connection to Washington power dynamics—the Khayyats needed something concrete from Congress and the Trump administration: the permanent removal of crippling economic sanctions that had strangled Syria's economy for years.

The Trump Golf Course Gambit

The intersection of commercial development and American political influence became crystalline when Wilson offered a strategic suggestion designed to capture presidential attention. His recommendation was as direct as it was revealing: rename the planned golf course after President Trump himself.

"I know how to get the president's attention," Mr. Wilson said. "Make it a Trump National Golf Course in Syria."

This comment encapsulates a defining characteristic of Trump's second term—the blurred lines between foreign policy, business opportunity, and family financial interests. The suggestion wasn't merely about branding; it represented a calculated effort to leverage Trump's well-documented affinity for seeing his name on properties worldwide. A Trump National Golf Course in Syria would instantly elevate the project's profile and potentially create a direct financial interest for the president or his family in Syria's sanctions regime.

The New York Times investigation reveals that such entanglements between private investment interests and foreign policy have become "an increasingly common feature of the president's second term." The Khayyats' simultaneous pursuit of $12 billion in reconstruction contracts while lobbying for sanctions relief created a textbook example of conflicts of interest, where the brothers' financial success directly depended on congressional action and presidential approval.

Broader Pattern of Foreign Policy Leverage

The Syria situation is not isolated. The article indicates broader involvement by Trump family members in international business negotiations. References to dealings with Albanian luxury hotel compounds and other foreign real estate ventures suggest a pattern where Trump family members and close associates are simultaneously engaged in substantial overseas investments while wielding influence over the administration's foreign policy decisions.

Representative Wilson's role in this scenario is particularly instructive. As a former real estate lawyer and existing advocate for sanctions relief, he occupied a unique position where his genuine policy convictions could align with—or be leveraged by—lucrative business opportunities. His suggestion to brand the golf course with Trump's name demonstrates how easily national security policy can become entangled with personal financial incentives.

The timing and coordination raise significant questions about transparency and accountability. The Khayyats' ability to simultaneously win over $12 billion in government contracts while lobbying for sanctions repeal suggests access and influence that warrants scrutiny. Their pitch to a sympathetic congressman, coupled with apparent connections to Trump family business interests, illustrates how post-Assad Syria—a country requiring careful, principled American engagement—risks becoming another arena for personal profit maximization.

While the Trump administration and the Khayyats deny that such deals are currently operational, the investigation documents the active exploration of these arrangements and the strategic thinking behind them. This gap between what is being floated and what is officially acknowledged remains a persistent feature of Trump's approach to governance, where informal channels and preliminary negotiations often precede—or substitute for—formal policy processes.