Trump crooked foundation revisited

There are accusations that...

"there’s a good chance that the Trump Foundation is only the grimy tip of the iceberg, when it comes to self-dealing and other dubious activities at small family foundations."

That's a great opening to introduce an organization 100% owned and controlled by the President of the United States. Slate also says...

"In 2015, 109,550 private foundations filed tax returns with the IRS, and almost none of them will ever be investigated by their state’s attorney general."

"Is Trump-style self-dealing abnormal for the Gates Foundation or the Ford Foundation? Absolutely."

New York attorney general, Barbara Underwood, said, "Mr Trump had illegally instructed the foundation to provide support to his presidential campaign by using the foundation's name and funds it raised to promote the campaign." Her petition also claims, "that Mr Trump used charitable assets to pay off legal obligations, to promote his own businesses and to purchase personal items, including a painting of himself." It was found that the Trump organization used Foundation funds to buy a $5,000 ad for Trump International Hotels in the DC Preservation League charity event programs.

The New York attorney general, in its 41-page complaint, said "The Trump Foundation was a Trump Organization slush fund; it wasn’t a genuinely charitable endeavor." The "Trump Foundation handed over some $2.82 million directly to Trump campaign staff, for them to disburse as they saw fit; those donations were specifically targeted to states with upcoming primaries where Trump was running as a candidate." The NYAG says that's illegal; Charitable foundations are not allowed to engage in political activities, period." Sounds like the legal advice was either faulty or Trump just didn't care.

It would appear that "in Trump’s mind, the Trump Foundation was never really a charitable foundation, created for acts of selfless generosity. Instead, it was little more than a money-laundering machine: Donors with their own ulterior motives could give tax-deductible donations to the foundation, and then in turn the foundation would be used whenever Trump wanted to funnel money to a nonprofit." And in that scenario you have the makings of a crook.

Trump plus children have been charged in crooked Foundation dealings

Trump/Children-co-conspirators alleged Foundation lawsuit

Certainly not in this county and I would venture a guess, that looking around the world, Donald Trump is at the top of the list for being a corrupt president. Other contenders that come to mind are

Jean-Claude Duvalier of Haiti, Slobodan Milosevic of Serbia/Yugoslavia, and Ferdinand Marcos, President of the Philippines. They all screwed the subjects of their countries as well as the government they represented. The big difference is they did it blatantly, accountable to no one. Donald Trump makes a big secret out of his chicanery, always feigning innocence.

Barbara Underwood, New York's attorney general, fled a lawsuit in the New York Supreme Court in Manhattan accusing the...

"foundation Trump) and its directors - Mr Trump and his three eldest children - of unlawfully co-ordinating with the Trump presidential campaign, repeated self-dealing transactions, and violating laws under which non-profit organisations must operate."

She added, "Mr Trump had illegally instructed the foundation to provide support to his presidential campaign by using the foundation's name and funds it raised to promote the campaign." Her petition also claims, "that Mr Trump used charitable assets to pay off legal obligations, to promote his own businesses and to purchase personal items, including a painting of himself." In other words the Oval Office lunatic used the Trump Foundation as a money machine to get him elected. The children involved in the lawsuit are Ivanka, Eric and Donald Jr.

Underwood alleges, "a pattern of persistent illegal conduct over more than a decade that includes extensive unlawful political coordination with the Trump presidential campaign," also saying,  "As our investigation reveals, the Trump Foundation was little more than a checkbook for payments from Mr. Trump or his business to nonprofits, regardless of their purpose or legality." The Foundation was supposed to be dissolved more than 18 months ago, making one wonder if it was kept open to funnel cash into Trump's campaign. Is this man so stupid to think he could get away with this?

Sam Stein, Political Editor of The Daily Beast tweeted, "Donald Trump personally directed his Foundation funds to be used to settle a lawsuit related to Mar A Lago. Here is the receipt."

The Trump Foundation critcized the lawsuit as “politics at its very worst” and accusing the attorney general of holding its $1.7 million in remaining funds “hostage for political gain.”

Sure.


Read more: New York sues Trump Foundation, alleging 'extensive' lawbreaking
                 
                   New York attorney general sues Trump Foundation

                   New York Attorney General Sues Trump Foundation For ‘Persistent Illegal Conduct’

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