Trump Calls Ex-Lawyer Habba Mildon's $50 Million Contract 'Not Acceptable' in Palm Beach Remarks

President Donald Trump said on Saturday it was "unacceptable" for one of his former lawyers, Alina Habba Mildon, to secure a $50 million contract for herself while working at the U.S. Department of Justice, Reuters reported in a file opened by the desk this run. "I thought it was totally obnoxious and outrageous, and it's not acceptable," Trump told reporters at his Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida. "Not acceptable at all."

The New York Times reported last week that the family of Julio Herrera Velutini, a Venezuelan banker who faced U.S. felony bribery charges before striking a plea deal in August 2025, guaranteed Habba Mildon more than $50 million over four years. The deal, according to the newspaper, would pay $10 million a year plus bonuses. Trump said he told Habba Mildon he did not want her to be paid and called the episode "terrible," Reuters reported.

Habba Mildon was serving as the acting U.S. attorney in New Jersey when she signed the contract with Herrera's family company, Concord Partners, days after it was registered in late October 2025, the Times reported. By the time she started her employment with the Herrera family, a court had disqualified her from serving as U.S. attorney. She resigned on December 8 and was appointed a senior adviser to the attorney general the same day, and was still in that role when, according to the Times, she started at Concord on January 1. Trump pardoned Herrera on January 15, 2026, according to the Justice Department's website, Reuters reported.

Habba Mildon last week said she was never paid for a pardon, never met with anyone at the White House or Justice Department about a pardon, and never did any work for a pardon for anyone. The Justice Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment, Reuters reported.