Tag: Trump for Sale

Trump Has Sold Nearly 1 Million MAGA Hats

Buck Banks

“We’re closing in on selling our one millionth red MAGA hat. You know those are 45 bucks a piece. You do the math there really quick, it’s $45 million. So those kind of things—this president has changed the game in the way merchandise, rallies, the entire experience of being part of the political movement. He’s changed it.”

— President Trump’s re-election campaign manager, Brad Parscale, telling CBS News that the campaign had sold almost a million MAGA hats.

Trump’s Big Donors get Ambassadorships

Buck Banks

$350,000

An NBC News review of those who donated to the Trump inauguration “found at least 14 major contributors to its inaugural fund who were later nominees to become ambassadors, donating an average of slightly over $350,000 apiece. Though the Trump administration says the business acumen of these nominees qualifies them to represent the U.S. abroad, six of the 14 nominations have languished for months in the Republican-controlled Senate. One nomination has stalled for about two years.”

Trump’s Washington Hotel Turns an Unexpected Profit

Buck Banks

$1.97 million

“Donald Trump’s company turned a $1.97 million profit at its opulent Trump International Hotel so far in 2017, dramatically beating its expectations and giving the first hard numbers to critics who charge that Trump is profiting from his presidency,” the Washington Post reports. “The Trump Organization had projected that it would lose $2.1 million during the first four months of 2017 as it established a new hotel and convention business in the nation’s capital, according to newly released federal documents. Instead the hotel, with its namesake in the White House down the street, is already turning a hefty profit and charging more for its rooms than most or all of the city’s other hotels.”

Most Trump Real Estate Deals to Buyers Who Shield Their Identity

Buck Banks

79%

“Since President Trump won the Republican nomination, the majority of his companies’ real estate sales are to secretive shell companies that obscure the buyers’ identities,” a USA Today investigation has found. “Over the last 12 months, about 70% of buyers of Trump properties were limited liability companies – corporate entities that allow people to purchase property without revealing all of the owners’ names. That compares with about 4% of buyers in the two years before.”

Trump’s D.C. Hotel Received $270k from Saudis

Buck Banks

$270,000

President Trump’s Washington hotel “received roughly $270,000 in payments linked to Saudi Arabia as part of a lobbying campaign by the Gulf kingdom against a controversial piece of terrorism legislation last year,” the Wall Street Journal reports. “The payments—for catering, lodging and parking—were disclosed by the public relations firm MSLGroup last week in paperwork filed with the Justice Department documenting foreign lobbying work on behalf of Saudi Arabia and other clients.”

China Grants Trump 38 Trademarks

Buck Banks

38

“China has granted preliminary approval for 38 new Trump trademarks, paving the way for President Donald Trump and his family to develop a host of branded businesses from hotels to insurance to bodyguard and escort services,” the AP reports. “If President Trump receives any special treatment in securing trademark rights, it would violate the U.S. Constitution, which bans public servants from accepting anything of value from foreign governments unless approved by Congress, ethics lawyers from across the political spectrum say. Concerns about potential conflicts of interest are particularly sharp in China, where the courts and bureaucracy are designed to reflect the will of the ruling Communist Party.”

Trump Owns 3,643 Domain Names

Buck Banks

3,643

“Before he reached the White House, Trump’s company had laid claim to at least 3,643 website domains,” according to internet records gathered by CNNMoney. Washington Post: “The bulk of the names are not surprising. DonaldTrumpRoomFragrance.com, CelebrityApprenticePoker.com and Trump.cheap are the sort of sites you’d want to reserve if you, too, owned an octopus-like consortium of restaurants, casinos, real estate, perfumes, steaks, wines, companies and brands of every kind. But what’s TrumpArmy.com about?”