Trump's Foundation Paved the Path to His Nomination

This is just the latest in a string of stories that show how Trump used his "charity" funds to buy influence, 'toys' and to pay off his lawsuits... Seems he set up this "charity", let people donate, and then took the money (famously, "other people's money") and used it for personal gain, instead of charitable causes. It's becoming more and more clear that Trump seems to be his own favorite charity case.

Trump Foundation Buys Gifts for Donald
Trump Foundation Used to Pay Legal Settlement
Trump Charity Could Violates Fraud Laws
Trump Uses Foundation Funds to Bribe Politician

And now... Trump Foundation Helps Fund Primary and Nomination (and you thought HE paid for it! LOL!

For a few years now, Trump has been using money from his "charity" to write sweet checks to several conservative activist groups, such as Iowa's Family Leader, South Carolina Palmetto Family Council, the American Conservatives Union and Citizens United.

In the years leading up to his presidential bid, Donald Trump's charitable foundation donated generously to several conservative nonprofits that would later help raise his stature within the movement.
...
In 2013, the same year as his foundation's first donation to Iowa's Family Leader, Vander Plaats invited Trump to speak at the group's leadership summit, according to the mogul. Trump spoke at the American Conservative Union's Conservative Political Action Convention the year he gave the group $50,000, and said he was asked to speak at the Economic Club of Washington at an event the same year he donated there, too.

a reply to: Benevolent Heretic

It's looking more and more like the Trump Foundation and not the Clinton Foundation is really the corrupt charity of the two. I'm not surprised. A common tactic of bullies is to project their own faults onto others.

I don't get why he didn't just call it the #GiveToTrumpFoundation...

Then it would all be legal.

His very own personal charity, I've never heard of laws against that.

I suppose not paying his taxes on the gifts received would hit him hard though.


Edit: Better yet, if he waited a few years he could have started a GoF*ckYourself GoFundMe.

originally posted by: Krazysh0t
a reply to: Benevolent Heretic

It's looking more and more like the Trump Foundation and not the Clinton Foundation is really the corrupt charity of the two. I'm not surprised. A common tactic of bullies is to project their own faults onto others.

Why not both?

a reply to: Benevolent Heretic

Thanks for bringing this out BH.

Might not be a shocker to everyone, but that the information is out there and clear for folk to see, means a great deal in this world of obfuscations and shell gamery.

originally posted by: lordcomac

originally posted by: Krazysh0t
a reply to: Benevolent Heretic

It's looking more and more like the Trump Foundation and not the Clinton Foundation is really the corrupt charity of the two. I'm not surprised. A common tactic of bullies is to project their own faults onto others.

Why not both?

Because one is overflowing with proof and facts (TF) and the other (CF) is based on wingnuttery speculation.

That's why not both.

So for 320k over 8 years he 'bought' the nomination? Just to be clear, where is the 'personal' gain here? This line in the article stand out to me....

While these friendships did not all pan out politically for Trump — Smith has continued to criticize the candidate, and Family Leader's Bob Vander Plaats endorsed rival Ted Cruz before the Iowa caucuses this year — the relationships did appear to be part of Trump's overall effort to boost his political profile.

So, was the foundation also supporting Cruz's nomination chances?

originally posted by: Hazardous1408



Edit: Better yet, if he waited a few years he could have started a GoF*ckYourself GoFundMe.

Don't give him any ideas!

originally posted by: lordcomac

originally posted by: Krazysh0t
a reply to: Benevolent Heretic

It's looking more and more like the Trump Foundation and not the Clinton Foundation is really the corrupt charity of the two. I'm not surprised. A common tactic of bullies is to project their own faults onto others.

Why not both?

Because I've yet to see any evidence of Clinton Foundation corruption. Just vast allegations and assumptions.

The pattern is getting pretty obvious here, says he hates illegals because they pay no taxes, he pays no taxes, says he hates immigrants that stay in the US by lying on their application, his wife lied on her application, says Clinton foundation is corrupt, all the evidence points to Trump foundation being corrupt, laughs because Clinton was cheated on, Trump has cheated on all 3 wives, accuses Bill of rape, underage girls have filled charges against Trump for pedophile rape, i mean I can keep going and going.

And it's all proven with hard evidence.

a reply to: Krazysh0t

Because they keep getting a pass...like the NY AG and the 250 million in foreign donations that were not reported and should have. Krazy you have to stop with the denial...

originally posted by: matafuchs
a reply to: Krazysh0t

Because they keep getting a pass...like the NY AG and the 250 million in foreign donations that were not reported and should have. Krazy you have to stop with the denial...

Please provide link to your accusations.

As far as I know, those donations were cleared, and the funds reported.

What they are not required to do is name names.

a reply to: matafuchs

Says the guy who had the opportunity to prove me wrong with some actual evidence but choose to use another assumption he read on the internet instead.

Way to go Mr. internet lawyer. A few more of those posts and I think you'll pass the internet bar and you can start presiding over some real "fake" internet cases and determine guilt with a Google search.

originally posted by: Krazysh0t
a reply to: Benevolent Heretic

It's looking more and more like the Trump Foundation and not the Clinton Foundation is really the corrupt charity of the two.

The fact you can say this and have been on ATS for 4 years astounds me.
Have you not been paying attention to the corruption in the Clinton camp for years?
Haiti?
Pay to play?
Whitewater?
Any of this ringing any bells?

Lets do a little mind exercise.
When was the first time you ever heard of corruption in the Clinton foundation?
When was the first time you ever heard of corruption in the Trump foundation?

Before his race for the presidency Trump was treated as royalty and respected by just about everyone media outlet, and politician alike. Except by maybe Rosie Odonnell who deserves every condescending remark Trump makes about her, karma is a b****! Just spend 5 minutes watching Trumps interviews from years ago. But be warned it is what actually showed me why he is risking everything running for president.

It's not for power!
The guy has his name on one of the tallest buildings in New York for crying out loud!
If it was for power why wait till the end of his life?
For all intents and purposes he should just do the next thing most billionaire seniors do and buy an island and retire.

He could use his money to influence and buy off politicians and presidents like the Koch brothers and George Soros. But rather Trump has spent 50 years putting mints on pillows and roofs over peoples heads offering services people desire and continue to come back to use. While every presidential candidate over the last century(except a handful) has made his/her career peddling death and destruction. He is risking his and his family's very lives with this. But in the same stroke he is doing it for them. I do believe his intent is lost on most...

Sorry but when the very entities and people who are wreaking havoc across the landscape tell me someone is dangerous I automatically gravitate towards that. In this case the lesser of two evils doesn't actually appear to be evil at all.
Have been waiting for a legitimate cause for concern with Trump from you all and I have yet to see it.

Another brain exercise...
When was the last time a presidential candidate offered a service anyone actually desired?

a reply to: Benevolent Heretic

But Crooked Hillary!!! Deflection, deflection, attack poster, deflection, cry on The_Donald.

He'll make America great again!

originally posted by: JAY1980

Lets do a little mind exercise.

I'd prefer FACTS and LINKS

Real facts - - not Breitbart, or some other Right Wing Rag.

a reply to: JAY1980

The fact that you believe that someone who goes to a conspiracy theory website would just blindly believe a conspiracy theory CLEARLY defeats the idea of openmindedness of the CT community, but then again I've lost all illusions that the CT community truly cares about openmindedness. It only cares about substituting its own narratives in for the mainstream account.

By the way, welcome to being poster number two who failed to provide any evidence of his claims. Keep proving guilt with a Google search.

Also I could care less about your appeal to emotion fallacy saying that just because I supposedly heard of the Clinton Foundation before the Trump Foundation that makes the Clinton one more corrupt. I care about cold, hard evidence. Not your wall of text.

So Donald trump used his chairity to give money to places where a charity would give money too...the horror

Trump has changed parties more then he changes wives. Since 2008, he's been a democrats, republican, independent, and back to a republican. All that time in his evil-sexist-racist-mysogonistic genius, he planned on running as a republican and made sure he greesed the wheels of the republican machine....sound about right?

In a flip side, how much did he donate to liberal causes during that time? Did anyone even stop to check that out. I k is that ruins the bulling on Trump, and that seems to be some people's favorite pastime.

I am sure he greesed any wheel that he had to, to do that vodoo that he did. When it's a pay to play system, you either pay or don't play, the Donald, played, so he obviously paid. Whom dos he pay, people like Clinton and Kain. Stop victim shamming Trump and point the spot light at the people who collect the money and not the people who were forced to give it

a reply to: Annee

Sorry, but you are incorrect....

nypost.com...

New York’s charity law clearly states: “Organizations that received a contribution or grant from a government agency during the reporting period shall include the name of each agency from which contributions were received and the amount of each contribution.”

In 2009, Clinton’s first year at the State Department, the foundation disclosed a lump sum of $122 million in foreign-government donations in its New York paperwork, posting the total amount on a form that requires all charities to “list each government contribution separately.”

Pay for Play anyone?

originally posted by: thinline
So Donald trump used his chairity to give money to places where a charity would give money too...the horror

Trump has changed parties more then he changes wives. Since 2008, he's been a democrats, republican, independent, and back to a republican. All that time in his evil-sexist-racist-mysogonistic genius, he planned on running as a republican and made sure he greesed the wheels of the republican machine....sound about right?

In a flip side, how much did he donate to liberal causes during that time? Did anyone even stop to check that out. I k is that ruins the bulling on Trump, and that seems to be some people's favorite pastime.

I am sure he greesed any wheel that he had to, to do that vodoo that he did. When it's a pay to play system, you either pay or don't play, the Donald, played, so he obviously paid. Whom dos he pay, people like Clinton and Kain. Stop victim shamming Trump and point the spot light at the people who collect the money and not the people who were forced to give it

Your attempt at deflection will not change FACTS.

Trump's "Rabbit Hole" goes deep and seems to be getting even deeper with new information.

Trump Used Foundation Funds for 2016 Run, Filings Suggest

“It was a quiet donation that came with a simple cover letter,” Smith said. It read: “Great meeting with you and your wife in my office,” dated May 6, 2011. Enclosed was a check for $10,000 from the Donald J. Trump Foundation.

That check is one of at least several donations to suggest Trump used his private foundation, funded by outside donors, to launch and fuel his political ambitions. Such contributions, if they were made solely for Trump’s benefit, could violate federal self-dealing laws for private foundations.

From 2011 through 2014, Trump harnessed his eponymous foundation to send at least $286,000 to influential conservative or policy groups, a RealClearPolitics review of the foundation’s tax filings found. In many cases, this flow of money corresponded to prime speaking slots or endorsements that aided Trump as he sought to recast himself as a plausible Republican candidate for president.

The lion’s share of those donations came from Trump’s personal funds and went straight to political campaigns or parties. But others, in particular those directed to the nonprofit arms of conservative policy groups, originated with Trump’s foundation.

“If he could do 501(c)(3) to 501(c)(3), he did it that way,” said the source, using the tax code designation for nonprofit organizations.

But Trump has not donated to the foundation that bears his name since 2008, CNN reported last month, which means other donors bore the cost of his giving.

The donations to groups that granted Trump plum speaking slots or otherwise promoted his political aspirations also might run afoul of self-dealing rules for private foundations, which prohibit a foundation’s leadership from using donor money for its own gain.

www.realclearpolitics.com...