Trump America II

The nation owed $20 trillion when Trump first came into the White House in 2017 and $27 trillion when he left in 2021. There was little appreciable change of direction in domestic or foreign policy

Together we will determine the course of America, and the world, for many, many years to come. 

—Donald Trump, Inauguration 2017

A nation finds the leader it needs when it needs him. England found Churchill. France found Bonaparte. The Soviet Union found Stalin.

And now... what have we found... the perfect president for the job ahead?

Maybe. Mr. Trump seems to be in tune with the financial gimcrackery of our era.

Truth Social didn’t seem to have a prayer as a real company. In September, the stock was at $12... and CNN reported:

Trump has lost $4 billion in Truth Social wipeout

But hold on. Then, Trump won the election; the shares now sell for $40. The company is still losing millions, making the world a poorer place, but Trump is getting richer than ever. Forbes:

Trump’s Net Worth Surges To $7 Billion—As Truth Social Parent Rallies

Want to know how much you can make betting on Trump’s unprofitable media company? Just ask Pam Bondi, below...

In a whole ‘nuther category is Trump’s new $Trump. It’s a ‘meme’ crypto, not intended to have any value. But it follows Fartcoin (up 4,012% in the last 12 months) and Butthole Coin (up 46%, 50% and 75% every 24 hours) and is taking the lead for scatological glory.

Trump’s coin, launched over the weekend, was worth as much as $74 billion on Sunday. Now it is worth $10.5 billion (although moving fast). The ledger shows one holder owns 80% of the tokens. Assuming the holder of the large mystery wallet is Donald J. Trump himself, it means he increased his own wealth (on paper!), between Friday night and Monday morning, by about $8 billion.

The rise, fall, and rise of Donald Trump’s meme coin, launched Friday night

Our pulse races. Our palms sweat. Our head swims. If Trump is $8 billion richer... who is $8 billion poorer? But there is where Trump’s peculiar skills may be most valuable to the nation: he is an expert at bankruptcy…and making failed businesses work, at least for him.

Trump University. Trump Mortgage. Trump Airline. Trump vodka. Trump steaks. Trump Magazine. Trump Taj Mahal. Trump: The Game.

The Trump Shuttle opened to great fanfare in 1989. Classic Trump. He borrowed $365 million to get it going. In 1992 it crashed... defaulting on its loans, more than $100 million of them guaranteed personally by Donald Trump. In later negotiations and a subsequent sale, Trump was able to clear away much of that obligation and said he made money on the deal.

The timing on the Trump Mortgage company couldn’t have been worse. But on CNBC, Trump told the world:

“I think it's a great time to start a mortgage company... who knows about financing better than I do?”

Launched in 2006, Trump predicted it would soon be the biggest mortgage lender in the country. Instead, it went out of business in the mortgage finance crisis a year later.

And then there was Trump Vodka. Begun the same year as the mortgage business, it followed a similar trajectory. Said Trump:

"By the summer of '06, I fully expect the most called for cocktail in America to be the T&T or the Trump and Tonic."

It was not to be. Instead, the vodka disappeared... except in Israel where an unauthorized version is apparently on offer.

2006 was a busy year for the Trump team. They even started a travel service, called GoTrump. The Donald explained the business strategy.

“When you get millions of people using your service, and you get X dollars per person, it adds up to a lot of money.”

GoTrump didn’t go far. It shut down in 2007.

“Excuse me... ” said Donald Trump defiantly. In one bankruptcy proceeding he claimed to the court that it wasn’t his fault. He had nothing to do with the management, he said.

“Then, how come you’re on the company payroll?” the judge wanted to know.

“For my genius,” he replied.

That was one of four bankruptcies he suffered in his resort businesses. The Taj Mahal in 1991. Another Trump Entertainment Resorts voluntary bankruptcy in 2004... another in 2008... and finally in 2014. The default amounts, put together, top $5 billion.

What went wrong? Bad timing. Bad judgement. Bad management. Bad luck. It could happen to anyone.

Trump University was not much different. It offered a variety of courses... but no college credit. National Review called it a ‘massive scam.’ Students sued... including a class action suit against Trump and others in charge. Texas, New York and Florida were on the case. Florida, however, pulled out of the lawsuit. Wikipedia explains why:

The office of Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi announced in September 2013 that it was considering joining a New York lawsuit against Trump University. Four days later, the Donald J. Trump Foundation donated $25,000 to "And Justice for All", a 527 group supporting Bondi's reelection campaign. After that, Bondi declined to join New York.

But wait. Ms. Bondi is back in the news. ABC News reports;

President-elect Donald Trump's attorney general pick, Pam Bondi, made at least $3 million from the merger that formed the parent company of Trump's Truth Social platform, her new personal financial disclosure filing showed. In all, Bondi, together with her spouse, reported a net worth of up to $20 million….

And this isn’t the first time Donald J. Trump is sworn in as Commander-in-Chief. The nation owed $20 trillion when he first came into the White House in 2017 and $27 trillion when he left in 2021. Otherwise, there was little appreciable change of direction, either in domestic or foreign policy.

It may or may not have been good for the country. But it worked for him.

Welcome to Trump America II.