GEO Group spent $2 million to elect Trump
- Wed, May 27 2026 at 1:04 PM
Politico: “Trump administration elevates former private prison company exec to lead ICE.”
President Trump picked David Venturella, a former executive at the massive private prison company GEO Group, to be the new acting head of ICE.
Unsurprisingly, GEO Group’s stock rose roughly 7% in the 24 hours after his appointment was announced.
ICE hasn’t had a permanent head since Trump first took office in 2017. It’s been helmed by acting directors since then. That’s a problem for continuity and accountability.
But it’s an even bigger problem to put a private prison industry executive in charge.
Up until January 2025, David Venturella had a contract to receive $10,000 in monthly consulting fees from GEO Group for two years. Politico reported that in his previous role within ICE, Venturella oversaw detention center contracts.
Meanwhile, GEO has over $1 BILLION in ICE contracts.
Trump broke with precedent and did not require his administration to sign an ethics pledge, a tool presidents have used for decades to strengthen rules against outside influence.
That means the firewall between Venturella and his previous employer is minimal.
Venturella’s not the only one. Trump’s border czar, Tom Homan, who took on a bigger role following the disastrous ICE surge in Minnesota, was also a paid consultant for GEO Group before joining the government.
And Mark, the ties between the Trump administration and the private prison company go deep.
GEO Group donated BIG to boost Trump’s reelection. It was the first company to max out to Trump’s campaign.
GEO Group’s PAC contributed $500,000 to Trump’s inaugural committee and its PAC, while its subsidiary and top executives contributed nearly $1.5 million to the Trump campaign.
They kept the money flowing. This year, a GEO Group subsidiary donated $1 million to MAGA Inc., Trump's super PAC, on March 9, 2026. GEO executives knew Trump’s election would be good for their business—and it has been.
But it hasn’t been good for anyone else.
While the company’s stock prices are up, Americans are footing the massive bill for Trump’s mass deportation campaign, and immigrants are facing worse conditions in detention facilities.
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