Donald Trump may want to run the country but, on a personal level, he’s fallen on his face financially a number of times.
Over the years some of his corporations have filed for bankruptcy. When Wall Street Journal reporter Kelly Evans asked Trump whether, with a record like that, he should be trusted with managing the finances of America, Trump replied that all he was doing was using the law of the country -- Chapter 11 -- to negotiate corporate debt deals.
So far, in polls taken of Republicans who may seek the nomination, Trump is running well. But the people of America don’t really know this guy yet.
Modesty is not his greatest virtue. Apparently that’s why he boasted he is far richer than a possible opponent for the Republican nomination, Mitt Romney. He called him a “small business guy, if you really think about it.”
One can wonder what Trump would say about Abraham Lincoln who, as a child, the story goes, read by the light of a fireplace. Lincoln was a poor boy. If he were around today, would the Donald trash him?
Trump said: “I’m a much bigger businessman and have a much, much bigger net worth,” Trump told CNN. “I mean my net worth is many, many, many times Mitt Romney.”
Trump sounds like a kid boasting in a schoolyard. And maybe that’s what he is -- a kid with a monstrous ego.
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His ego has been fueled by the success of his abrasive style on his TV shows on NBC. Trump has said: “My brand alone is worth $5 billion.” Forbes Magazine says it’s worth far less. His net worth was estimated by Forbes this year at $2.7 billion.
So, although he has bounced around a bit financially, he isn’t a pauper. Judging by the way he’s adorned his buildings with the Trump name in big letters, one might expect that a President Trump would plaster “Trump House” on the face of the presidential residence. That might cause some negative press.
I spoke to Professor Doug Muzzio of Baruch College about a possible Trump candidacy for president.
“Give me a break!” Muzzio declared. “Trump on the Republican ticket would be a Democratic dream. He’d be the most ego-maniacal candidate in the field. And he should get a haircut. Some advisers must be telling him he has a shot. I think he would crumble early on.”
As if to bolster his lack of credentials Trump has assailed LaGuardia Airport as worthy of a Third World country. Probably he feels the same about the people of Queens who live near there. He has boasted that he has a great relationship with “the blacks” -- but saying it that way is not likely to win votes among black Americans.
It’s sad that, out of eight million New Yorkers, this is the only one who’s talked about to lead our country. So far! We can hope for better choices ahead.
