Trump Plugs Lawn Firm After Old Goon Visits White House

President Trump praised a grass company after it spent more than half a million dollars lobbying the government since his return to office, the Daily Beast has learned.

Read more Creepy MAGA Rep, 65, Does 3.30AM Reveal About Running Again

Trump took a break from an on-camera signing of an unrelated executive order in the Oval Office on Monday to plug Ohio-based grass company Scotts Miracle-Gro.

As markets closed in New York on Monday evening, Scotts Miracle-Gro Company was up 3.8 percent on its closing value on its previous day of trading on Friday.

It comes after a prolonged lobbying push from Scotts Miracle-Gro, which hired lobbying firm BGR Government Affairs to access various government branches, including the White House. Since Trump took office, BGR has lobbied the White House every quarter.

In total, Scotts paid $540,000 across the six quarters of the Trump administration so far, as published in federal databases at the time of writing.

BGR lobbying on behalf of Scotts is nothing new, having done so since 2017, but since 2025 it has become the firm’s sole registered representative in government, having previously shared the job with other firms.

Since those early days, one name has been ever present on BGR’s dockets: Dan Murphy, who since 2017 has slowly gone from being part of a wider team to the sole representative for Scotts in front of government, according to the filings seen by the Beast.

Once a personal aide to Vice President Dan Quayle, in 2017 he worked as director of the U.S. Presidential Transition Team, President-Elect Support, as Trump’s first administration moved into government, taking over from President Obama.

Murphy’s first recorded lobbying of government for Scotts Miracle-Gro came three months after he left the transition team.

Read more Pentagon Pete’s Secret Plea for Cash Is Leaked

“President Trump is generously donating his time and resources to beautify the People’s House, a project which past presidents only dreamed about,” White House spokesman Davis Ingle told the Beast. “Since announcing this historic plan, the White House has been inundated with calls from generous Americans and American companies wishing to contribute.”

Trump had gone off on one of his trademark tangents in the Oval on Monday, bragging about what he considers his accomplishments around the capital.

“It was a graffiti-filled, crime-filled mess,” he said. “We turned it into Shangri-La. We turned it into a great place. Look outside, look what’s happening. Look at the beautiful ballroom and military center. It’s a military center much more than—we have a drone port on top. We—look at the grass in front of the White House.

“It’s being all replaced with the top stuff. The parks are all being replaced. It starts very soon, actually. We’ll do one at a time. It’s about 700 acres of parks. They’re all going to have brand new, the best grass you can get, Scotts. You know Scotts, Scotts Miracle-Gro. They’re doing it. They do great grass. What can I tell you?

“I got to give them a plug because they did the White House for free. ‘Sir, we’d like to give you new grass at the White House.’ I said, ‘I’ll take it, how much?’ He said, ‘Free.’ ‘I’ll take it. Thank you. Thank you very much.’”

Scott Miracle-Gro had already raised eyebrows when it pledged to give the National Park Service $1 million in product and cash to repair the South Lawn after Trump’s big 80th birthday and Freedom 250 UFC brawl, according to Business Insider.

OpenSecrets reported that it had previously donated $500,000 to a pro-Trump PAC, Make America Great Again Inc, during the 2024 election.

Scott’s former chief executive, Jim Hagedorn, left the company in 2026, but last year told Fox Business that he is a “major fan” of the president.

Read more Hannity Melts Down at His Own Network’s Poll Spelling Trouble for Trump