Khaberni - A press report revealed that the personal phone number of US President Donald Trump has become a traded commodity among some brokers and influential individuals, in informal deals aimed at direct access to the US president.
According to a report published by "The Atlantic," Trump’s phone number has become the center of informal exchange and selling operations among journalists, officials, and figures in the business world, in an attempt to secure a chance for direct communication with the president.
The report conveyed that Trump's personal number has become the subject of "bargainings and sales in the black market" among influence brokers.
In some cases, phone numbers of world leaders or significant figures were exchanged for obtaining the American president’s number, in deals likened by the report to trading player cards or cards of Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani among collectors, but with a significant difference in the political value of these deals.
The report also indicated that the number was offered for sale to wealthy entities seeking to influence or gain direct access to the president.
According to a White House official, Trump receives a large number of calls daily from journalists, to the extent that the phone might receive about 10 calls within just two hours.
One official said: "It's back-to-back calls from journalists, it happens very fast."
The report added that White House officials sometimes have to search the internet for the names of journalists calling the number to verify their identities.
At the beginning of Trump’s second term, his personal phone number was known only to a close circle of friends and some journalists.
But after about 14 months into his new term, the number began to circulate among a larger number of journalists, businessmen, and even some investors in the cryptocurrency sector.
During his first term, Trump used two iPhones, one dedicated to posting on social media, while the other was designated for calls only.
The two phones were provided by the White House Communications Agency and the White House IT teams, an agency overseeing the presidential communication systems.
On her part, White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said the president enjoys a high level of transparency and openness with the media.
She added: "President Trump is the most transparent and accessible president in history, and the media never tires of communicating with him."
Despite this, observers believe that the circulation of a state president’s phone number in this manner might raise security and regulatory questions about how direct communications with the highest office in the United States are managed.
