when drumpfy loses, and with all the publicity about how he has screwed every contractor,

[niyad]

every supplier, every employee he has ever had, how many people do you think will work for him now? apart from his loyalists, who deserve everything they WON'T be getting.

[forest444]

1. Someone on DU brought up the chance that Trump will suffer a fall of "Fitzgeraldesque" proportions

Trump may indeed end up drinking himself to death after this.

Goodness knows I don't wish it on him; but extremist demagogues often end up like that. Just ask Joe McCarthy.

[saltpoint]

2. Have been thinking a bit about Trump and

Romney, the last two GOP prez noms.

Both put themselves forth as businessmen, successful businessmen, but both have records of untoward (not to say disgusting) business practices, and both of their records suggest contempt for working people.

Romney with Bain Capital and Trump with his own shady dealings and misappropriation of charitable accounts, etc.

Also I'm still mad at Romney for the way he treated his dog.

[unblock]

3. there's no comparison. rmoney was a smart, innovative, value-adding genius compared to trump

rmoney certainly had his faults as a businessman and candidate and this is in no way an endorsement of him. some of his deals certainly weren't saintly.

but on the whole, he did create a viable ongoing business that largely stuck to industry standards, and he did it better than competitors.

trump is a fly-by-night fraudster. he was never even the biggest player in manhattan, why is he famous in the first place. moreover, his business model is clearly built on getting things from suppliers and then refusing to pay them the agreed price for the simple reason that he can and it costs a lot to sue and collect. this is a clear abuse of the court system.

it also burns relationships. now the fraud comes in.

trump brands himself and his hotels as the best, gold-plated, luxury, etc. if a customer pays top dollar for a luxury hotel, the customer expects that the extra money is going to pay for better employees, better suppliers, etc.

except it's not. trump simply burns through contacts so that he's largely working with people and suppliers he doesn't know and who don't know him. that's not what a customer think they're paying for.

this aside from the other fraud, e.g., trump university.


beyond that, trump's business model is completely unsustainable. at best it's all about him. when he's gone, there's nothing, really. especially after he loses the election. bigly.

[saltpoint]

5. Your distinction about R-money is on the money (!)

-- and I agree. Romney was polished, but he was also a gut-level narcissist.

There was this dust-up, which stays with me:

When Glen interrupts with the notion about a lobbyist in Romney's campaign, Romney freaks. He is able (unlike Trump) to keep the surface smooth with a roomful of people, but the "I'll knife your throat" look he gives Glen is very telling.

Your assessment of Trump's career and business profile works for me. But I pick up much of the same elemental narcissism that Romney had, even if Romney was able to control it in a way Trump cannot.

[unblock]

6. right -- and that's why republican leaders have been freaking out about trump. he's too obvious.

that said, many republican businessmen aren't fly-by-night the way trump is, nor are they fraudsters.
they're typically not about to give employees surprise bonuses just because they had a good year, but they're not likely to burn suppliers either.

[saltpoint]

7. It will be interesting (or depressing)

to watch what the GOP does next. I think they are positioned for a truly historic loss in November.

I'm guessing there will be the usual chatter about "outreach" and "appeal to minorities," but I'm not seeing much traction on either count.

They have a deep bench of unstable kooks ready to run in 2020. I don't see any actual grown-ups anywhere near plausibility for them.

[unblock]

10. I'm very worried about 2020.

We're in the longest expansion ever already. It can't last another 4 years. Especially with a republican house blocking all spending. It's tough to get reelected in a recession.

[saltpoint]

12. I'm hearing you on that loud and

clear.

If there's some cash left over from the Clinton-Kaine campaign, it would be useful to dedicate it in portion to state and county Democratic organizations to build up those organizations.

We need a much stronger bench in some places than we have.

[canetoad]

4. I'm hoping

All the people he screwed over get in touch with each other and launch a yuuuuge class action.

[Skoods]

8. lol

Please, the guy still has tons of money AAANND a majority of the blue collar workers and many many small business owners still salivate over his orange balls.

[TeamPooka]

9. "Cash Up Front Trump" I hope his campaign vendors are taking note of this polcy.

[Historic NY]

11. The Trump name will be "shizen"

[niyad]

13. . . . .

[MoonRiver]

14. Also his "name" has been destroyed.

That was a huge source of his income. Now

[niyad]

15. I wish I had more faith in the intelligence of people, but. . . .

[MoonRiver]

16. His name brand has already been destroyed. Few hotels etc. want to be associated with this creep.

If Donald Trump is nothing else, he’s an American brand. The Trump name adorns luxury condominiums, hotels and golf courses around the world; it has sold a TV show, millions of books, a line of cologne and even, briefly, an airline.

And that brand, according to new data published here in Politico Magazine for the first time, is taking a major hit in the wake of his presidential campaign.

http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2016/01/donald-trump-2016-brand-business-213515

[niyad]

17. well, that was a bit heartening. would you consider making this its own OP, for

wider visibility?

[MoonRiver]

18. I will. Thanks!