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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region Forums"These financials are clear: this is not a golf business, it's a money disappearing business."
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Jennifer Thayer
@JTNaylor
Read the thread: "These financials are clear: this is not a golf business, it's a money disappearing business."
Adam Davidson
@adamdavidson
This is why I think Trump is doing more than tax avoidance.
This is from financials for the Aberdeen property. It's one page from one year, but tells a story repeated year after year.
I hope at least some stick with me (esp. @susannecraig @russbuettner @mmcintire )
Adam Davidson
·
Sep 29, 2020
Replying to @adamdavidson @susannecraig and 2 others
The thing everyone reports is the losses--the shareholder (Trump) has lost more than £7M.
But the interesting stuff is the fixed asset value and the creditors--over one year.
Trump is all of them: he owns the asset, lends the money, owes the money, is owed the money.
2/
We see the same process year after year. He lends himself millions, the asset value is increased by that same number of millions.
This happens in many years when he does no work on the property--no investment, no building.
It happened through the 2008 crash.
3/
Adam Davidson
·
Sep 29, 2020
Replying to @adamdavidson @susannecraig and 2 others
Aberdeen was collapsing from the overall financial crisis and the--locally--far worse collapse of North Sea Oil. Property values were shrinking.
Trump Aberdeen saw the same process--no development, but huge loans from Trump and huge increase in claimed asset value.
4/
Those loans are actually spent. Here is Page 10.
You see: major outflows of cash for operations and capital. The cash on hand at end of year is only £94K.
Again--this happens in years when he spends no money on developing the course or resort.
5/
Adam Davidson
·
Sep 29, 2020
Replying to @adamdavidson @susannecraig and 2 others
There's much more to say--each line here is fascinating.
But the overall picture is crystal clear: Every year, Trump lends millions to himself, spends all that money on something, and claims the asset is worth all the money he spent.
6/
He cannot have spent all that money on the properties. We have the planning docs. We know how much he spent--it's far less than what he claims.
The money truly disappears. It goes from one pocket to another pocket and then the pocket is opened to reveal nothing is there.
7/
@susannecraig and 2 others
A bit of this could be explained as tax avoidance or fraud. But he is going to enormous effort to falsify upwards the overall valuation of the property--the opposite of what he'd do if this was solely tax fraud.
8/
Instead, this is a huge effort to mask a money pit as an appreciating asset--in other words, one he can't write off.
That is why I am skeptical of the idea that this is all his own money.
I have shown these docs to many accountants, lawyers, prosecutors, FBI agent, etc.
9/
Adam Davidson
·
Sep 29, 2020
Replying to @adamdavidson
Nobody has come up with a plausible legitimate reason for these accounting shenanigans. And all agree it's a bit ornate and not quite right for simple tax avoidance.
The most likely explanation is, of course, money laundering.
10/
Remember: these are the cleanest financials we have from the Trump Org. They are audited and made public because of UK rules.
So, whatever is going on here should be the least sketchy thing he's doing.
Please please please check my math and my analysis.
11/
Adam Davidson
·
Sep 29, 2020
Replying to @adamdavidson
You can do this at home.
Go to:
https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk
search "Trump International Golf" and open the FULL ACCOUNTS for each year.
You see a clear trend:
From 2005 to 2010, the disappearing cash is relatively low--a million or two a year.
12/
Then it grows and grows from 2010 to 2016, far outpacing his actual spending.
Then, when he becomes president, it all stops. It just remains at its inflated value without the annual loan. Which is weird, ...
13/
Adam Davidson
·
Sep 29, 2020
Replying to @adamdavidson
The family was claiming to be preparing a massive investment and surely needed money for architects, designers, planning docs, lawyers, etc.
Why would he turn off this mechanism in 2017?
14/
I am blown away by the NYT reporters work. A great 40,000 foot view of the whole forest.
But you also have to look at each tree and see what is going on.
These financials are clear: this is not a golf business, it's a money disappearing business.
15/
tweet 5. Here it is.
But, again, you can do all this at home. Free and sort of easy.
16/end
Oh, forgot to make the most obvious point:
If this is a money disappearing business and it is not only tax fraud, then he is making money disappear for somebody else and charging some sort of fee. Which might explain why a money-losing golf course pays huge fees to its owner.
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"These financials are clear: this is not a golf business, it's a money disappearing business." (Original Post)
soothsayer
Sep 2020
OP
underpants
(182,641 posts)1. Very interesting
Thanks
Cha
(296,893 posts)2. Rts.. TY!
drray23
(7,620 posts)3. This sounds exactly like a setup for laundering dirty money. nt.
soothsayer
(38,601 posts)6. He's a sneaky so and so
I can imagine his glee when he learned as prez he could get people to commit crimes he could pardon.
dixiegrrrrl
(60,010 posts)16. And that's just one of his golf courses
Betcha the hotels and courses will be the same, esp. in other countries.
Chemisse
(30,805 posts)4. I can't wait to find out what this all means.
It's all going to unravel now.
GeorgeGist
(25,311 posts)5. Who's turning a blind eye to this?
If it's so obvious.
soothsayer
(38,601 posts)8. Well the thread discusses this thusly
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The Los Angeles Airport of Santa Ana
·
Sep 29, 2020
Replying to @adamdavidson @susannecraig and 2 others
Honest question that is frustrating me: if it's so clear there's something shady afoot, and these documents are all publicly available in the UK... Why is this the first serious probing we're seeing?! Is it really as simple as "rich people get their way" 99% of the time?
Bill McCarty
@billyboy14
I think it's really a case of white collar crime being a very difficult, time consuming, resource draining, and expensive thing to investigate. The enormous effort to untangle the deceptions and follow the leads though many dead ends is more than regulators can or want to do.
Native
(5,936 posts)7. Best line, "This is the least sketchy thing he's doing "
Blue Owl
(50,291 posts)9. Well well well, this is all very, very interesting, Donald...
Very, very interesting indeed...
soothsayer
(38,601 posts)10. Like he did with daddy
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David Hayes
@DavidHayes1956
·
Sep 29, 2020
Replying to @DavidHayes1956 @adamdavidson and 4 others
I tried looking it up. Found this in a Vox article: "In 1992, the Trump children created a phony company, All County Building Supply & Maintenance, to pad the cost of their fathers building purchases. The company did nothing but pay vendors, and was reimbursed by Fred Trump -->>
David Hayes
@DavidHayes1956
--->> at a higher rate, with the extra money split by the kids."
Framed photos of President Donald Trumps parents, Fred and Mary Trump, in the Oval Office.
Tenants today are reportedly still paying for a Trump family tax scheme from the 1990s
vox.com
https://t.co/HBesmLFuPt?amp=1
wnylib
(21,347 posts)11. He's a money laundering Russian agent.
dlk
(11,523 posts)12. Money laundering...
AllyCat
(16,156 posts)13. A money disappearing business
Wow.
smirkymonkey
(63,221 posts)14. Kicked and bookmarked!
NoMoreRepugs
(9,376 posts)15. Thank you Mr David.
yardwork
(61,540 posts)17. Money laundering.
Dark n Stormy Knight
(9,760 posts)18. K&R.
Not that reasonable people who are paying attention needed any more proof that Drumpf & his cronies are crooks. They need to be prosecuted for every one of their crimes.
tblue37
(65,227 posts)19. K&R for visibility. nt