Give it time to play out. Trump's debt to Chinese

Give it time to play out. Trump's debt to Chinese banks is probably a bigger story though.

Could hamstring him in his plans to 'play tough ' with China as well as cause pause in the debate prep when he uses 'crooked Hillary', and his 'preppers' tell him 'no, can't go there anymore, 'glass-house'.

Quote:

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Donald Trump's Companies Are At Least $651 Million In Debt, A New York Times Investigation Finds

The $651 million includes only companies Trump owns outright. He also is a limited owner of companies with debts of nearly $2 billion.

By Todd Richissin (Patch National Staff) - August 21, 2016 12:43 pm ET 

Companies owned wholly by Donald Trump are at least $651 million in debt, reaching a level that could have a major impact on his personal fortune, according to an investigative report published Saturday by The New York Times.

The $651 million includes the debt total only of companies that Trump owns outright. The Times also looked into companies that he has invested heavily in and discovered that a substantial portion of his wealth is tied to three limited partnerships in companies that together are nearly $2 billion in debt.

Among those waiting to collect that money: Bank of China, one of the largest banks in the country that Trump has threatened to harm economically through trade sanctions; and Goldman Sachs, the giant financial institution that Trump frequently bashes for having paid Hillary Clinton hundreds of thousands of dollars in speaking fees.


Despite Trump's past ownership of several companies forced into bankruptcy by the weight of excessive debt, he has long portrayed himself as a wildly successful businessman. He has argued that he will call on his financial wizardry to rebuild inner cities, repair roads and bridges, increase the military budget, round up and deport 11 million undocumented immigrants and reduce the national debt — all while cutting taxes.


Here's the link to the full story: 'Trump’s Empire: a Maze of Debts and Opaque Ties' by Susanne Craig with contributed reporting from David W. Chen and contributed research from Susan C. Beachy, The New York Times.

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/21/us/politics...s&_r=0


The Times reporter who wrote the story, Susanne Craig, managed to speak with Allen Weisselberg, chief financial officer of the Trump Organization. He did not dispute the debts associated with Trump-connected properties but said Trump's liability was overstated.


Craig points out that Trump's holdings will present serious conflicts should he win the White House, regardless of whether he decides to fully disclose all of his investments.

Trump has said he would likely turn over control of his companies to his children while in office, which would do nothing to alter decisions that could determine whether he'd leave office even wealthier than when he got in or if he will leave the White House damaged financially by yet more defaulted loans, more settlement negotiations and more attempts to save his companies using bankruptcy protections.

From the Times:

As president, Mr. Trump would have substantial sway over monetary and tax policy, as well as the power to make appointments that would directly affect his own financial empire. He would also wield influence over legislative issues that could have a significant impact on his net worth, and would have official dealings with countries in which he has business interests.

The investigation by the Times was made difficult by Trump's continued refusal to release his tax returns.

The Times slogged on without them, identified more than 30 Trump assets in the United States and then searched for everything it could find on those companies. The investigation, the Times reported, covered thousands of pages of public information, including loan documents, land leases and property deeds but did not include Trump businesses operating overseas.

By the end of the search, the Times had discovered Trump holds significant interests in three companies that went deep in debt as he served as a limited owner. Together, the Times reported, the companies are nearly $2 billion in debt.

None of that debt was acknowledged on the financial disclosure forms Trump filed in May, fulfilling a requirement for all candidates running for federal office.

Congress passed the disclosure law in 1978 intending to increase government transparency and reduce conflicts of interest. It would seem, then, that the law would require candidates to include some level of detail on debts and assets.

Candidates are permitted to describe their financial information in ranges so broad they're almost useless. Trump managed to fulfill the financial disclosure requirement despite his failure to offer any valid information about his wealth or liabilities.

He reported that his companies carried a debt totaling $315 million. That's less thank half the debt uncovered and documented by the Times, which reported most of the $651 million his companies owe is for obligations to repay loans.

If those loans were to go into default, Trump's wealth would take a serious financial hit, the Times concluded.


Trump has insisted that he is worth at least $10 billion. Fortune and Forbes magazines, though, recently concluded in separate assessments that Trump's wealth was less than half what he claims. Last week, Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index estimated his worth at $3 billion, far less than Trump claims but not bad for a guy who steered his companies into bankruptcy four times.

A look at Trump's 2007 sale of a 43-story Manhattan office tower may explain the skepticism that his true wealth and full business dealings will ever be known unless he divulges the information himself.


Under terms of the building's sale, the Times reported, Trump relinquished a controlling interest of 70 percent to a firm called Vornado Realty Trust while he retained a 30 percent stake in the property as a limited owner.

Five years later, in 2012, Trump would be involved in a deal with four financial institutions that ultimately agreed to lend the office tower's owners $950 million. More notable than the size of the loan, is Trump's role in the agreement. From the Times:

In a typically complex deal, loan documents show that four lenders — German American Capital, a subsidiary of Deutsche Bank; UBS Real Estate Securities; Goldman Sachs Mortgage Company; and Bank of China — agreed in November 2012 to lend $950 million to the three companies that own the building. Those companies, obscurely named HWA 1290 III LLC, HWA 1290 IV LLC and HWA 1290 V LLC, are owned by three other companies in which Mr. Trump has stakes.

Richard W. Painter, a professor of law at the University of Minnesota and the chief White House ethics lawyer for two years under President George W. Bush, said the extent of debt acquired by Trump-connected companies and the candidate's opaque business ties will cause problems if he's elected. Questions about Trump's motives will be raised with every policy he enacts and with every bill he proposes, he said.

“The success of his empire depends on an ability to get credit, to get loans extended to his business entities,” Painter told the Times. “And we simply don’t know a lot about his financial dealings, here or around the world.”


Give the full Times story a read. It manages to put the importance of Trump's debt and business tactics into perspective, its heavy use of documents leaves no room for credible criticism of the reporting. And, perhaps most important, read the story for a healthy and welcome reminder of the value of solid journalism.

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