Trump Trades Oil Stocks While Overseeing War with Iran

President Trump's investment accounts have continued to buy and sell stocks in oil and natural gas companies while he oversees the US war with Iran, according to his financial disclosure filings. The president has purchased and sold oil and gas stocks worth hundreds of thousands of dollars since the start of the year.

The estimates from Democrats on the Joint Economic Committee show that the value of Trump's holdings in oil and gas companies jumped from $13 million to $46 million at the beginning of the year to $17 million to $61 million by mid-August. The energy stock purchases and sales make up a small portion of Trump's overall net worth, which Forbes estimated to be over $6 billion as of August 26.

The White House claims that independent managers make decisions about the president's stock portfolio, and Trump doesn't weigh in on buying or selling stocks or securities. However, some experts believe that the transactions could be part of a strategy to lower Trump's tax bill through 'tax-loss harvesting' activity.