Most of us have heard of his failed business ventures. Most would agree that any successful businessperson
should be allowed a few mistakes.
Nothing ventured nothing gained. Among those failures are his casino in New
Jersey, the Trump University, Trump Steaks, Trump Airlines, Trump magazine,
Trump Mortgage, Trump’s travel site, Trump Vodka, etc., but here I would like to shed a bit of
light on just one of his business misadventures where his character is clearly
evident.
"It shows that business crime may not always pay but a lack of scruples and morals can have value."
Trump Ocean
Resort Baja Mexico is but one of several failed “Tower” ventures. While all of these tower failures bear
similarities, this one typifies Trump’s demeanor and attitude. It shows that business crime may not
always pay but a lack of scruples and morals can have value. In the Baja Mexico, Ocean Resort, D.J. Trump licensed
his name to developers. He became a
front person to add credulity to the project. He represented himself as the developer/builder
of the project. He claimed to have
purchased his own unit in Tower 1. Two of his siblings (Don Jr. and
Ivanka) were buying condos there as well. They all attended events for the promotion of the project.
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| Billboard fraudulently states, "Trump Owning Here..." They were eventually known as Ghost Towers |
In 2006, two
Los Angeles-based developers named Jason Grosfeld and Adam Fisher announced
they had formed a partnership with Trump to develop a three-tower 525-unit ocean-front
condo and hotel project in Baja Mexico. The
condominiums would cost from $275,000 to $3 million and would sit on 17 acres
with swimming pools, spas, tennis courts, and fine dining. The developers built a sales office on the
site, produced slick brochures, and a slick seven and a half minute video
featuring both Donald Trump and Ivanka Trump promoting the project.
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| From July 2007 Press Release "property built by...Donald J. Trump..." |
In the video, Trump claims, “that when I
build, I have investors that follow me all over. They invest in what I build, and that’s why
I’m so excited about Trump Ocean resort.” Anyone who watched this video, who read the
brochure, or who may have talked to D.J. Trump, Ivanka, or Don Jr. at VIP
cocktail receptions, would be led to believe that Donald Trump was the
developer/builder and was heavily committed to the project. They would be told that Don Sr., Don Jr., and
Ivanka had purchased units in Tower One.
In a 2007 sales brochure, purchasers were told that the Baja resort was
being “developed by one of the most respected names in real estate, Donald J.
Trump.”
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| From July 2007 Press Release Donald Trump Jr. never bought any unit |
As is now
known, these were all lies designed to defraud purchasers. We know they were lies because investors sued
him in 2013 for fraud and Trump lost. However,
Trump also won in that the investors only got back a fraction of their
money. How much they got is confidential,
as Trump knows to keep all such arrangements sealed.
While many lost thousands of dollars in this
debacle, Trump’s lawyers still claim that the purchasers should have read the
fine print in their contracts. Ivanka
Trump told CBS News that her family had “lived up to our
obligation under a license agreement.” She
said: “We were never the developer of this project,
and that was made clear. We never took
anyone’s deposit.” She is correct in this as she and her family members only
collected licensing fees and were never the developers.
No member of the Trump family ever invested a dime in this project but they lied to the public for financial gain. Three family members showed up at promotional events and told "investors" aka people buying vacation homes, that they would all be neighbors. When the project failed Ivanka Trump stated, “I am sorry for everyone, but we are in the same boat.” Well, if she meant that the investors were in a sinking lifeboat being towed behind the Trump yacht by a badly frayed rope, maybe there is some accuracy in the analogy.
If this were an isolated incident perhaps Trump Ocean Resort Baja could be chalked up to "an oversight" or lapse in judgment. But as they say on TV, wait, there's more. He did it again in Tampa. With Trump Tower in Tampa, Florida, Trump sold the use of his name to developers of the $300 million condo project for $2 million. According to Rolling Stone, the developers collected down payments from investors but after the project went south in 2008, the snookered buyers sued Trump for misleading them. Trump did settle the suit, but plaintiffs lost hundreds of thousands of dollars.
If you know all of these things about his business practices and still think he is a fit president, I imagine your values differ from mine. Even if you still think he is a good president, I doubt you would buy a condo from this man.
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| Perhaps the failure could have been foreseen.... |
No member of the Trump family ever invested a dime in this project but they lied to the public for financial gain. Three family members showed up at promotional events and told "investors" aka people buying vacation homes, that they would all be neighbors. When the project failed Ivanka Trump stated, “I am sorry for everyone, but we are in the same boat.” Well, if she meant that the investors were in a sinking lifeboat being towed behind the Trump yacht by a badly frayed rope, maybe there is some accuracy in the analogy.
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| “I am sorry for everyone, but we are in the same boat.” Ivanka Trump Somehow I doubt she was aboard this one. |
Trump also
defaulted on a $640 million construction loan for Trump International
Hotel & Tower in Chicago in 2008. Then there was Trump Hollywood,
a $355 million project where lenders were forced to foreclose but again, Trump
claimed that he only licensed his name and wasn’t guilty of fraud. Then again in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, where
people thought they were buying into the Trump Hotel & Tower Ft. Lauderdale (now called the Conrad) but lost their deposits
of $100,000. Trump again stated he only
licensed his name.
This predatory practice of not risking his own money, licensing his name, deceiving buyers into thinking he has a commitment and/or is the builder, has gotten Donald J. Trump into trouble time after time. But, he keeps making money playing the same game. He gets away with this by defrauding innocent buyers, getting sued in court, and settling the suits for pennies on the dollar. An individual with scruples or some sense of morality wouldn't be able to sleep at night but I don't think that is Mr. Trump's problem. His sociopathic personality lets him sleep like a baby.
If you know all of these things about his business practices and still think he is a fit president, I imagine your values differ from mine. Even if you still think he is a good president, I doubt you would buy a condo from this man.
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| Your New Luxury Trump Tower Condo Caveat Emptor |
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