Donald Trump the Reality TV Star who is famous for saying “You’re fired” and also for hosting a Miss Universe contest. He is not famous for being a politician and therefore I have not taken him seriously as Jon Steward on the Comedy Central bashed him on the day he announced his intention for running as President as he had a speech on the 16th June 2015 as a Republic Party Presidential Candidate.
He usually talks about how he can make good deals and do that in Government, I will show how he has done in the past to prove that he is not all good, and has earned money on government funding, fathers inheritance, and also destroying other people’s possibility to earn while smashing other people livelihood for his own benefit, as he has done in Scotland and Atlantic City.
I could have bashed him for his empty rhetoric and for not telling how to really make “America Great Again” as he is an empty suit with no moral fiber what-so-ever as he uses Immigration policy and spread fear to the public to gain momentum and surge of the angry clue-less white rednecks; who couldn’t open a book or read a Foucault explanation on how “Governance” supposed to be. As he believes he can with he deals structure can fix everything. While I doubt it, as the structures and procedures will stifle him, as he is not an island at the White House and in the Senate and House of Representative in Congress; as he has to follow the guidelines of these outfits.
Something he can’t dictate as he does with his Trump Organization where all the Yes Men follow his every move; the same will not happen there as he cannot be the grand dictator and authoritarian leader who owns Capitol Hill, as it seems the “American Great Again” doesn’t have the pulse. But follows on the fear and not on political framework, unless Mr. Trump himself earns on the new taxation reforms, not for the public; as he is a rich man who doesn’t want to be more taxed. He wants to continue to have low tax on the rich and continue to have close to 30% tax on blue-collars and working-class, not the rich, or giant International Companies, as they have loop-holes and systems to get money to tax-heavens instead of paying tax directly in the United States. This is an international problem, but with the growing debt and less income, while having issues to pay to gain growth, there must be a way of getting the wheels rolling. But I don’t see that from Mr. Trump, rather from Bernie Sanders. That is just me. Let’s take a look at some of the bad-deals of Mr. Trump!
His value in 1990 out of his People’s Magazine Article:
“Indeed, Wall Street sources say that the purpose of the bailout is not to get Trump up and running, but merely to buy time for the banks to oversee the sale of virtually all of his assets. Donald Trump’s empire, once valued at $3 billion, may be as good as gone, and even his private wealth is at risk. His debt is said to include $500 million in personal loans, and though he claims to be worth more than that, some analysts assay his net worth at less than zero” (Kunen, 1990).
How he really earned his wealth:
“Trump was born in New York City in 1946, the son of real estate tycoon Fred Trump. Fred Trump’s business success not only provided Donald Trump with a posh youth of private schools and economic security but eventually blessed him with an inheritance worth an estimated $40 million to $200 million” (…)”In 1990, due to excessive leveraging, The Trump Organization revealed that it was $5 billion in debt ($8.8 billion by some estimates), with $1 billion personally guaranteed by Trump himself. The survival of the company was made possible only by a bailout pact agreed upon in August of that same year by some 70 banks, allowing Trump to defer on nearly $1 billion in debt, as well as to take out second and third mortgages on almost all of his properties” (…)”In 1995 Trump took Trump Hotels & Casino Resorts Inc. public and received a substantial financial boost from society and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regulations that enable the market to function. He initially sold 10 million shares at $14 per share and then in 1996 sold 13.25 million shares at $32.50 a share. This initial public offering granted Trump’s company a stability and legitimacy that would have been impossible without millions of people around the world trusting his organization and investing with the hope of shared success” (Lapham & Miller, 2012).
Now on some of his direct bad deals as the Scottish adventure, Atlantic City’s Casino’s, Trump Shuttle and Trump Vodka, take a look!
Scottish adventure as his bullies the land of inheritance:
Where he wanted to build a Golf Resort:
“The site comprises the Menie Estate an area of 452 hectares (ha) of estate policies, agricultural land, heath and dune. It is located between the A90 trunk road (A90T) and the sea about 14 km north of Aberdeen city centre, and 8 km from the northern limit of the city at the conference centre. The eastern boundary with the foreshore at the high water mark is approximately 4.2 km long, while the site narrows to the west so that the boundary with the trunk road is no more than 1.1 km. At its widest the site is about 2 km from east to west. Balmedie Country Park lies immediately to the south on the coast, while further to the west and south farmland separates the site from the village of Balmedie” (…)”The Menie Estate was most recently used for a combination of commercial shooting and some agriculture but now forms the operating base for the applicant company; Menie House is undergoing restoration as a residence. Since taking ownership Mr Trump has stopped both shooting and hunting on the land” (…)”Mr Trump has been concerned about the environmental effects of the development from the outset, although he acknowledged that he did not know the land was protected when he bought it” (…)” A world class golf course also requires world class facilities. The clubhouse would be the nucleus of the development. The hotel would be a grand five star building that would complement the landscape in the same way that the hotels at Turnberry and Gleneagles do. The hotel and conference centre would attract golfers and non-golfers. Mr Trump believes that it would in itself be a major boost to the economy of the north east of Scotland” (Scottish Government, 2008). That was back in 2008 and was in the recommended because of the economic prosperity in the area at the cost of the special sand-dunes that had an environmental unique place in European standard, but for the price of getting a world-class golf-course was the price the Government of Scotland accepted together with the Aberdeenshire Council” (Scottish Government 2008).
Some other local punters – A timeline of actions from Trump in Scotland:
“Then, on 3 November 2008, the Scottish Government granted outline planning permission for the resort, subject to 46 conditions, indicating that ‘there was significant economic and social benefit to be gained from this project’ (Scottish Government 2008b). Again, the response to this decision was predictably polarised. Industry and tourism leaders declared that it demonstrated that the North-east, and Scotland more widely, was ‘open for business’ (Whitaker, 2008a); while environmentalists feared that it would set a ‘precedent which will undermine the whole protected-sites network in Scotland’ (Urquhart, 2008)” (…)”In May 2009, it emerged that Trump International, in preparing its detailed resort masterplan, had advised Aberdeenshire Council that it would be lodging further applications for outline planning permission, but for eight parcels of land not currently owned by the organisation. These included four private homes that Trump International was hoping to acquire through ‘amicable’ discussion. It also emerged, however, that Aberdeenshire Council had prepared a briefing note for councillors which raised the prospect of compulsory purchase orders being used to secure the land (Ross 2009), although Trump International insisted that this would only be pursued as an ‘absolute last resort’ (Urquhart 2009)” (…)”Eventually, in January 2011, Trump announced that he would not be seeking compulsory purchase orders for the residential properties; that he would effectively build his course around them. However, Trump also claimed that ‘we have consistently said that we have no interest in compulsory purchase and have never applied for it’ (Urquhart, 2011). This was despite the existence of a letter from early 2009, released under freedom of information, in which his legal representatives had clearly asked Aberdeenshire Council ‘to exercise its powers of compulsory purchase…to acquire the eight plots of land on behalf of TIGLE’. That letter has become widely available online (see, for example, Scottish Green Party, 2011)” (Baxter, 2014). “In 2013, the Scottish government approved plans for the installation of wind turbines off the Aberdeenshire coast – which would generate enough energy to power 68,000 homes. Trump soon claimed that having this windfarm near his golf course “would spoil the view”, and thus entered into a legal battle against the project. But this was a battle he would lose, leading Alex Salmond to call him “three times a loser” and argue that the legal process had potentially jeopardised “a vital £200 million boost for the economy of the North East of Scotland”. In response to Salmond’s comments, a Trump Organisation spokesman said the former first minister had an “overinflated ego” and that the Scottish government was embarking on a “dangerous experiment with wind energy” which was based on a “foolish, small-minded and parochial mentality”. This in spite of the fact that wind energy is now considered to be the cheapest energy technology available in the UK” (Sabio, 2015).
Alex Salmond regrets Opening business for Trump:
“There is nothing wrong with his golf courses, the problem is that Trump Turnberry is unlikely to ever get on The Open circuit. If Turnberry doesn’t get an Open, then that costs the Scottish economy £100m” (…)“I think the association with Trump is now net damaging to the Scottish economy.” (Schmid, 2016).
This here proves that all of his business is not a good deal as he has taken some of the special areas of Scotland, not followed his promise, stifled the locals and had issues the Government over their own development as the sufficient work with the Golf Course and area that Trump Organization had planned for the area, is not working as well as the Locals or Trump hoped for; as the development of the project never got into the stages that Trump promised.
Atlantic City Casinos gone bad, his response to newspaper actually writing about him:
“He said the bankruptcy was the result of external forces beyond his control, specifically an extremely bad economy in 1990. He said he had “the prerogative” to change his mind about using junk bonds in the financing” (…) “I didn’t want to have any personal liability, so I used junk bonds. I accept the blame for that, but I would do it again,” he said. But Trump vehemently denied that the deal represented a personal failing or affected his personal wealth” (…) “This was not personal. This was a corporate deal,” he said. “If you write this one, I’m suing you.” (Bandler, 2016).
Here are outtakes of the deals done in Atlantic City:
“The casino opened in April of 1990. Just over a year later, Trump was not going to be able to make his June payments. The Times said Trump was on the hook for $900 million that year, and the Taj Mahal eventually filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Trump lost about half of his interest in the casino, and had to sell his private yacht and plane to help pay his losses. His creditors even put him on a budget (of $5.4 million, so … not that bad of one)” (…)“Trump Plaza was the next to fall out of his control. It was hemorrhaging cash in the early 1990s — Johnston estimates that, in the end, Trump lost about a million courting high-roller Kashiwagi (who was found dead, stabbed 150 times, in Japan in 1992) — and filed for bankruptcy protection in November. The banks took a 49 percent stake in the Plaza in exchange for more favorable terms on the $550 million in debt the building had on it. Trump remained as CEO, but no longer had a role in day-to-day operations” (McQuade, 2015).
How the Locals in Atlantic City feels about Trump:
“Sen. Jim Whelan (D-Atlantic) said Trump’s legacy in the city is a “mixed one.” (…)”The notion that he was somehow responsible for the success that Atlantic City had is not accurate,” said Whelan (D-Atlantic), who was the city’s mayor in the 1990s. “Nor is he responsible for the problems we now have.” (…)”Whelan said Atlantic City already had casino gambling for several years when Trump arrived, adding: “It’s not like he was a pioneer.” (…)”Experts said Trump ran his casinos like other owners did — and stressed that he didn’t simply leave the city on his own terms. Though Trump’s casinos were hurt by the same factors as the others in Atlantic City — a sputtering economy and growing competition from neighboring states — and though other casino companies filed for bankruptcy over the years, his companies’ four bankruptcies are also more than any other in town” (Johnson, 2015).
Another deal gone sour was “Trump Shuttle” or his Airlines:
“NEW YORK — The sky became the limit Thursday for real estate mogul Donald Trump with the maiden flights of his Trump Shuttle service – fashioned from the innovative Eastern shuttle — taking off after a fog delay” (…)”The inaugural voyages of the Trump Shuttle, with four newly painted airplanes bearing the developer’s name, were scheduled for 7 a.m. in New York, Washington and Boston. All were delayed at least 20 minutes by thick fog in New York and Boston” (…)”Trump purchased the shuttle for $365 million from strike-battered Eastern Airlines, which is owned by the Texas Air Corp. The deal was approved May 24 by a federal judge overseeing Eastern’s reorganization under Chapter 11 of the federal bankruptcy code” (…)”Trump hired some 1,000 workers, 800 of them former Eastern employees, for the new service, said Bruce Nobles, the shuttle’s president and chief operating officer” (…)”’People are really tired of being pushed around at Pan Am. Pan Am is not exactly one of the great stalwarts of the industry,’ Trump said. ‘We’ll have the safest, most beautiful planes in the air and we’ll have the best service.‘” (…)”Trump said he expected the fare to remain at $99, the same as Pan Am, but, ‘We’ll match any price on the market’” (Wolfhorst, 1989). Already in 1991: “USAir will retain the Trump Shuttle’s employees and has an “understanding” with its unions over the shuttle’s operations, Goldman said. USAir is holding talks with its unions seeking major concessions to help it ride out the recession and its heavy losses” (…)”The USAir deal must still win final approval from the group of approximately 40 banks involved in Trump’s finances and win regulatory approval from the Transportation and Justice departments” (…)”Trump said yesterday that the deal helps him reduce his debt. “That’s what we’ve been doing for the last year is knocking the hell out of debt,” he said. “USAir is a fine company, and the shuttle is a great asset.” (Hamilton, 1991). In 1992 this happen to it: “On Mar. 13, he is expected to conclude the final segments of a massive debt restructuring, which will give lenders the Trump Shuttle airline and hand over 49% of the Plaza Hotel in exchange for a lower mortgage-interest rate” (Businessweek Archives, 1992).
In 1993 the result was this: “A USAir Shuttle spokesman says the 87 were fired because the company wanted “an optimized cost-efficient operation.” Their work will now be done by an outside contractor who can do I more cheaply, says Terry Hallcom, manager of the shuttle. (USAir manages the former Trump Shuttle for Citicorp and about 20 other banks that acquired it when Donald Trump defaulted on $380 million in 1991.) “The shuttle management needed to cut jobs to cut costs,” says Citicorp spokeswoman Amy Dates. “We at Citicorp have gone through our own restructuring but have also gotten through it.” (People’s Magazine, 1993). You can say that the Trump Shuttle didn’t work out and the workers lost their jobs on the speculations of Donald Trump. As the Banks to ownership together with 20 Banks who salvaged the ownership of the company. That is a manifestation of how bad this deal was for Trump.
Trump Vodka ended with the bottum-up:
Then we have his fallen throne with the alcoholic beverage Trump Vodka. Here is some on this: “Trump Vodka will be a major player in the vodka arena – it’s a superb product and it’s beautifully packaged,” boasted the teetotaling magnate. Cases of the Dutch-distilled, big-name booze were transported across a red carpet – behind velvet ropes – to a waiting delivery van. A Port Authority police escort accompanied the van to a warehouse in Long Island City, from where Trump Vodka will be distributed. It’s being advertised as “a vodka worthy of the Trump name” and will be sold in a “special gold crafted bottle” designed by graphic artist Milton Glaser, creator of the iconic “I [heart] NY” logo. Patrick Kenny of Drinks Americas Holdings Ltd., said all that matters is that his name is on the bottle. “It’s no secret that Donald Trump doesn’t drink,” he said. “But we’re in the super premium vodka market, and there’s nobody who markets better in the luxury category than Donald Trump” (…) “A one-liter bottle of Trump Vodka will sell for about $30” (Woodberry & Corky JR, 2006). A review of the dink: “The vodka, a five-times-distilled Dutch vodka by renowned distiller Jacques de Lat, is made from select European wheat. After distilling, the vodka is stored in stainless steel tanks for six months, run through a carbon filtration process twice, then a 9-column filtration process, and finally carbon filtered two more times. The vodka is then bottled in a sleek, tapered design from Bruni Glass, with label and packaging by the legendary graphic designer Milton Glaser. The result is what we’ve come to expect from anything branded with the Trump name. For all the attention to detail in the packaging and design, this is a vodka that doesn’t even make a good mixed drink. All of that filtration the vodka goes through has resulted in a spirit more akin to fuel treatment. The burn on the finish is intolerable – more “your mouth’s on fire” than “you’re fired” – with no discernable flavor from the wheat, and an oddly thin consistency for a spirit made from a heavy grain” (Sudo, 2007). In 2009 this happen to the company distributing the beverage: “J. Patrick Kenny, the Company’s CEO, stated, “We believe that this financing is very favorable for the Company especially in this challenging economic environment. The transaction will provide the Company with an immediate and near term cash infusion which will enhance our cash flow and enable us to continue to grow and expand our brands. Prominent in this growth is our imminent beer launch with Kid Rock, our growing Leyrat Cognac business, the continued growth of Trump Vodka and our rapidly growing Olfiant Vodka business, all of which this financing will help facilitate.” (Business Wire, 2009). Something is never seen or heard about since, the reports later said because of lack of interest for the beverage, the production of Trump Vodka went out in 2011. Though there are rumors that is still on sale in Israel as a Israeli Company got the license for in in 2010 from American Holdings Ltd and sell it for 15 years, as it the same year was sued from the Trump Organization, how the court case or beverage is; is not an easy task since there is so little precedence or evidence of actual production, as you can only buy from the early 2000s when the production of it was on Ebay, if you’re a fantastic fan of Trump and get a golden bottle.
As I have showed he did not make money from scratch, he is not a self-made Millionaire or Billionaire! He inherent and gained early on the property market after his father’s rise in the business in New York; he did not come with Oliver Twist lifestyle and suddenly by pure genius gain an economic rise. That is somebody else who has done, not him.
In the 1990s he went totally bankrupt; he was bailed out by big-government and luck of connection in banks as they gave him leverage on the property that could be profitable in the future. A possibility an ordinary person would never achieve or get. The rich also get better service and better treatment then the working-class. He was even at one point valued zero and having accumulated pure debt, while working with most of the banks to restructure his businesses. At this point there we’re none good deals, as he failed in the Air, later in beverage with his Vodka, also Casino’s that was not profitable in Atlantic City and his Scottish adventure that has not become what he promised Alex Salmond or the Aberdeenshire Council as they have lost both green energy source and a future potential tourism site; and a world-class golf course as he didn’t care for the locals, they just had to be happy that he could do as he please and his will was the best, and nothing else did matter. The same way he is discussing matter as a politician.
He tells the world he only make “Good Deals” then he must have a reactive memory, or a selective memory, this is not all of them, as this some of the big ones. And a reminder of the matter at hand; if he has plans of making America greater in this way then he will be a Machiavellian Lord who will do as he please without thinking consequence of the ordinary person or the effect of the policy/law. That should be stressed and thought about as the trickledown economics isn’t really a functional and the riches he gained wasn’t by rare luck, though he lived by the posh lifestyle by how he raised. He was raised rich and made himself even richer. There is a saying: “you need money to make money”. That is surely the tale of Mr. Trump. Not a good deal made his wealth, and if it wasn’t for the mercy of the state and the banks in 1990s he wouldn’t have been able to wealthy today. That is why he was positive to the Barrack Obama’s Stimulus Package to save the economy as it was similar to how his own businesses were saved. He could not hate something that saved his own skin. Even if he fear immigrants as his heritage is from Scottish roots and family coming from Europe back in the day. The irony is there and he is surely a strange clone in the elections in the United States. I have now on my page this described and showed something sinister of two candidates there, the first was Jeb Bush and now Donald Trump. I took the economic approach and not his human vision as it is ghastly and not worth spending my mind on or finding his terrible quotes as it is fear-mongering and not worth ink. This is enough for today. Peace.
Reference:
Bandler, Aaron – ‘One Newspaper Wanted To Report About Donald Trump’s Atlantic City Finances. So He Threatened Them’ (22.01.2016) link: http://www.dailywire.com/news/2827/one-newspaper-wanted-report-about-donald-trumps-aaron-bandler
Baxter, Graeme – ‘Open for business? An historical, comparative study of public access to information about two controversial coastal developments in North-east Scotland’ (01.03.2014) link: http://www.informationr.net/ir/19-1/paper603.html#.VrtmAFjhDI
Businessweek Archives – ‘The Donald’s Trump Card’ (22.03.1992) link: http://www.bloomberg.com/bw/stories/1992-03-22/the-donalds-trump-card
Businesswire – ‘Drinks Americas Closes Private Placement for Cash Infusion of Up to $3 Million’ (25.01.2009) link: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20090625005282/en/Drinks-Americas-Closes-Private-Placement-Cash-Infusion
Johnson, Brent – ‘Trump’s controversial time in A.C. under new scrutiny with presidential run’ (25.10.2015) link: http://www.nj.com/politics/index.ssf/2015/10/trumps_controversial_time_in_ac_under_new_scrutiny_with_presidential_run.html
Kunen, James S. – ‘Pop! Goes the Donald’ (09.07.1990) link: http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20118158,00.html
Hamilton, Martha M. – ‘USAIR REACHES ACCORD TO RUN TRUMP SHUTTLE’ (20.12.1991) link: https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/business/1991/12/20/usair-reaches-accord-to-run-trump-shuttle/a5870bec-d890-422f-9e4a-02360de12599/
Lapham, Mike & Miller, Brian – ‘ECONOMY Exposing How Donald Trump Really Made His Fortune: Inheritance from Dad and the Government’s Protection Mostly Did the Trick’ (09.07.2012) link: http://www.alternet.org/story/156234/exposing_how_donald_trump_really_made_his_fortune%3A_inheritance_from_dad_and_the_government’s_protection_mostly_did_the_trick
Lee, Michelle Ye Hee – ‘Donald Trump’s false comments connecting Mexican immigrants and crime’ (08.07.2015) link: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/fact-checker/wp/2015/07/08/donald-trumps-false-comments-connecting-mexican-immigrants-and-crime/
McQuade, Dan – ‘The Truth About the Rise and Fall of Donald Trump’s Atlantic City Empire (16.08.2015) Link: http://www.phillymag.com/news/2015/08/16/donald-trump-atlantic-city-empire/#M16Ri9meooifJh9z.99
People’s Magazine – ‘Out in the Cold’ (20.12.1993) link: http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20107064,00.html
Sabio, Osio – ‘This is why Donald Trump is not welcome in Scotland’ (18.12.2015) link: http://www.thecanary.co/2015/12/18/donald-trump-not-welcome-scotland/
Schmid, Stefan – ‘Alex Salmond insists Scotland does not need Donald Trump’s investment’ (18.01.2016) link: http://www.thenational.scot/news/alex-salmond-insists-scotland-does-not-need-donald-trumps-investment.12500
Scottish Government – Directorate for Planning and Environmental Appeals: ‘Case reference: CIN/ABS/001
- Site Address: land at Menie House, Balmedie, Aberdeenshire
- Application APP/2006/4605 for outline planning permission dated 27 November 2006
called-in from Aberdeenshire Council by notice dated 4 December 2007.
- The development proposed: Golf course and resort development
- Date of inquiry: 10 June – 4 July 2008 ‘ (10.10.2008)
Sudo, Chuck – ‘A Classy New Vodka From A Man Lacking Class’ (22.01.2007) link: http://chicagoist.com/2007/01/22/a_classy_new_vodka_from_a_man_lacking_class_.php
Woodberry, Warren & Corky JR, Siemaszko – ‘I’M DONALD TRUMP, DRINK MY VODKA’ (07.10.2006) link: http://www.nydailynews.com/archives/news/donald-trump-drink-vodka-article-1.643186
Wulfhorst, Ellen – ‘First flights take off on Trump’s renamed Northeast shuttle’ (08.06.1989) link: http://www.upi.com/Archives/1989/06/08/First-flights-take-off-on-Trumps-renamed-Northeast-shuttle/6472613281600/
MinBane 