NEW REPORT: Trump’s False Philanthropy Exposed

The Washington Post’s David Fahrenthold published yet another explosive report revealing Trump’s lack of charitable giving, despite his history of making dramatic public promises of donations, and detailing Trump’s misuse of his foundation. Hillary Clinton highlighted the new report in her remarks today at Wilton Manors, saying it was “truly stunning.”

Washington Post: “For as long as he has been rich and famous, Donald Trump has also wanted people to believe he is generous … It was, in large part, a facade. A months-long investigation by The Washington Post has not been able to verify many of Trump’s boasts about his philanthropy.”

Slate: “The Washington Post’s David Fahrenthold has spent months going through records and talking to people to try to figure out whether Donald Trump is really as charitable as he claims to be. At this point in the campaign, it should surprise no one that the answer is no... Although Trump, particularly through his foundation, did give some money to charity over the years, much of it was self-serving and the dollar amounts of his contributions were often much less than what he made it seem.”

Today in Wilton Manors, Hillary Clinton highlights Trump’s “charitable giving, or lack thereof.”

“But yesterday the Washington Post published a report that was truly stunning. It starts with the story of a ribbon-cutting back in 1996 for a nursery school serving children living with HIV and AIDS in New York. Now, let me say, this is important in part to remember. This is a story about children with HIV and AIDS. So there was a big celebration honoring the donors who had supported the nursery school, and all the kids and their families, for whom this was the most important thing you can imagine. Because you know, back in the ‘90s, some of you remember.  Right? Children weren’t welcomed in school.

And then, unannounced and uninvited, guess who barges in? Donald Trump. He walks right up to the stage. He sat down in the seat that was being saved for a local developer who had made a generous donation. None of the people working for the charity knew why he was there. He wasn’t a donor at all. He had never given a single dollar to help build the school. He just wanted people to think he had. So he sat on the stage through the program, even posed for photographs, and when it was over, he got up and walked out. No explanation. No donation. Now really, who does that? What kind of person does that?  Really? I mean, who pretends to help kids with HIV and AIDS in order to make themselves look good? Well, I’ll tell you: The same kind of person who would pull a bait and switch on a high school chess team.

Back in 1997, he was principal for a day at a public school. That was a program we used to have in New York. The chess team was holding a bake sale to raise money to travel to a tournament. They were $5,000 short. He walked up to them and handed them a fake million dollar bill.  At first the kids and their parents were excited. Then they were devastated to learn it was a joke. So he gave them 200 bucks and drove away in his limousine. Now, this story does have a happy ending because a woman read the story about Donald Trump’s behavior, called the school, and donated the $5,000.  And the coach remembers this woman saying, “I am ashamed to be the same species as this man.”

Just this morning, Kellyanne Conway was pressed on Trump’s false philanthropy and was unable to provide any evidence that Fahrenthold’s reporting was anything other than spot-on.

WATCH: Kellyanne Conway Talks Tax Returns, Charity

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: Tim Kaine mentioned a big story in the Washington Post that found Donald Trump’s personal giving has disappeared entirely in recent years after calling 420 plus charities with connection to trump. The post found one personal gift between 2008 and the spring of 2009. They call into question all of the promises he’s made about giving to charity. Will Trump release his tax returns and show what he’s given?

KELLYANNE CONWAY: Not until our accountants and lawyers say we should.

[…]

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: Any contributions to charity over the last several years from the foundation? The Post couldn’t find any and you wouldn’t respond.

KELLYANNE CONWAY: I’m told by those in charge of the Clinton Foundation —

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: Trump Foundation.

KELLYANNE CONWAY: Excuse me, yes, George. He’s been incredibly generous with his time and money over the years. He started that foundation with just his money and the only contributor for a number of years.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: But nothing over the last five years.

KELLYANNE CONWAY: I don’t know that.

For all the latest, follow our Scheduled Events page and follow Clinton on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram. Also, be sure to subscribe to the campaign’s official Podcast, With Her.

HFA Releases History of Trump’s History of Disrespect for Veterans and Military Families

Following Donald Trump’s speech before the American Legion’s National Convention yesterday, Hillary for America released a collection of quotes in which Trump has been disrespectful of veterans, the military, and their families. The full release is below.

From firing employees because of their military service, to lying about donations to veterans’ charities, to scamming veterans through Trump University, here’s a refresher on some of Trump’s most offensive statements and positions regarding veterans and military families:

Trump has attacked veterans and military families, including a Gold Star family.

NYT: Donald Trump criticizes Muslim family of slain U.S. soldier, drawing ire. “Donald J. Trump belittled the parents of a slain Muslim soldier who had strongly denounced Mr. Trump during the Democratic National Convention, saying that the soldier’s father had delivered the entire speech because his mother was not “allowed” to speak.”

BuzzFeed: Trump: My position on keeping terrorists out is what bothered Khizr Khan. “Trump has faced backlash from Republicans and Democrats over his remarks but has continued to attack the Khans.”

And when Trump was done, his campaign and allies continued the attack.

Stephen Bannon: “No, we’re not going to get off Khizr Kahn, we’re going to stay on this guy. We’re going to stay on this relentlessly.”

NH1: A top trump veterans adviser tells NH1 News Khizr Khan has ‘disgraced his son: “State Rep. Al Baldasaro, a top New Hampshire adviser to Donald Trump on veterans issues, says that Khizr Khan has ‘disgraced’ his son and ‘used him as a political pawn.'”

Trump has also profited from ripping off veterans and military families, and his businesses have fired employees because of their military service.

• Huffington Post: Trump Institute fired veteran for ‘absences’ after he was deployed to Afghanistan. “Wright was deployed to Afghanistan in the spring of 2007. When he came home to his job, the Trump Institute fired him. “All of your absences,” Wright’s boss at the Trump Institute told him, had forced the company to “reevaluate your position with the Trump Institute.” It is a violation of federal law to penalize an employee for absences caused by military service.”
• CNN: Iraq war veteran claims Trump University fired her for serving in the Army Reserve. “Corrine Sommers, who worked for Trump University for five months, sued Trump University after she was dismissed in October 2007. She reached a confidential settlement in that case. But she later alleged that she was fired because of her military service in a November 2012 deposition she gave in a federal class action suit that accused the school of fraud. That deposition was unsealed this week.”
• Huffington Post: Third Veteran Dumped By Trump Because Of Military Service: “Yet in at least three cases, Trump’s companies have either fired, or refused to hire, military reservists because of the time commitments demanded of them by their service in the armed forces.”
• TIME: What the legal battle over Trump University reveals about its founder. “The records indicate, for example, that Trump University collected approximately $40 million from its students–who included veterans, retired police officers and teachers–and that Trump personally received approximately $5 million of it”
• CNN: 40-year Navy veteran scammed out of $26,000 by Trump University
• The Daily Beast: Trump University’s star student: ‘it was a con.’ “’It was a lie,’ said Maddings, an ex-marine now 32, who told The Daily Beast that he racked up around $45,000 in credit card debt to buy Trump University seminars and products. […]'[Trump University] was a con. I’m 25-years-old, barely making $3,000 a month and they told me to increase my credit limit. I just maxed out three credit cards and I’m supposed to be able to qualify for loans to buy real estate? Those stupid principles have led me to borrow $700,000 of other people’s money and lose it all. I’m still paying off some of that debt to this day.”

Trump has also repeatedly lied about donating to veteran charities.

• Mother Jones: Donald Trump tried to cheat veterans out of $1 Million. “Donald Trump tried to cheat veterans out of $1 million: “ I want to make this simple. Here’s what Donald Trump did recently: He pledged $1 million to help veterans; he tried to weasel out of it for months and hoped no one would notice; and when he finally got caught, he ponied up grudgingly and insulted the reporter who caught him.”
• Washington Post: Four months after fundraiser, Trump says he gave $1 million to veterans group.“Trump also said he had never actually promised that the fundraiser had raised $6 million. ‘I didn’t say six,’ Trump said. In a video of the event, Trump tells the crowd at the end, ‘We just cracked $6 million! Right? $6 million.’ When asked about that quote, Trump said, ‘Well, I don’t. I don’t have the notes. I don’t have the tape of it.’”
• CNN:Trump’s website boasts that he gave $1 million to the 1995 Nation’s Day Parade, but the event’s organizer said that’s about three times more than he actually gave.
• CNN:“After signing a deal to launch his brand of vodka, Trump went on CNN’s ‘Larry King Live’ in 2006 and described the venture, saying, ‘I’m giving the money to charity.’ […] the vodka company sent multiple press releases stating it would donate sales proceeds to the Walter Reed Society, a charity supporting programs at Walter Reed Hospital. The charity’s administrator tells CNN the donations amounted to about ‘a few hundred dollars.'”

Trump also attempted multiple times to kick disabled veteran street vendors off Fifth Avenue, near the home of Trump Tower.

• NYDN:“Do we allow Fifth Ave., one of the world’s finest and most luxurious shopping districts, to be turned into an outdoor flea market, clogging and seriously downgrading the area?”
• NY Post: Trump to Mayor: Boot fifth ave peddlers: “Whether they are veterans or not, they should not be allowed to sell on this most important and prestigious shopping street… I hope you can stop this very deplorable situation before it is too late.”

Trump signaled he wants to privatize the VA and that he opposed the post-9/11 GI bill.

• WSJ:Donald Trump adviser signals plan to change veterans’ health care. “While short on details, the presumptive GOP presidential nominee would likely push VA health care toward privatization and might move for it to become more of an insurance provider like Medicare rather than an integrated hospital system, said Sam Clovis, Mr. Trump’s chief policy adviser, in an interview.”
• Asked point-blank in May if he supported the Post-9/11 G.I., which has benefitedover 700,000 veterans and their family members, Trump said no.

He’s disrespected prisoners of war like Senator John McCain…

• Trump on Sen. John McCain: “He’s not a war hero. He was a war hero because he was captured. I like people who weren’t captured, ok? I hate to tell you.”
• BuzzFeed: Trump: I Don’t Regret McCain Comments, My Poll Numbers Went Up

…compared his own “struggles” to the true sacrifices of those who serve our country…

• Trump said that despite never serving our country, he “always felt that I was in the military” because he was sent to a military-themed boarding school.

…and after a veteran even gave Trump his coveted purple heart to which Trump responded:

• “This was much easier.”

Ultimately, Trump has shown he is completely unfit to serve as commander in chief.

• Last year, Trump downplayed the dangers of war with modern technology, claiming that if an armored Humvee is hit with an explosive, our soldiers just “go for a little ride upward and they come down.”

Trump said earlier this year that our military is a “disaster.” Later on, at a campaign rally in Delaware, he went as far as to say that our military is in “shambles” and that it needed rebuilding.

For all the latest, follow our Scheduled Events page and follow Clinton on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram. Also, be sure to subscribe to the campaign’s official Podcast, With Her.

News Source: The Washington Post

Judicial Watch Releases Additional Clinton Emails

Huma Abedin (second row) aide to Hillary Clinton, and Hillary Clinton, attend Women’s Empowerment Principles event at the 59th Session Of The Commission On The Status Of Women United Nations headquarters in New York, NY, on March 10, 2015. (Photo by Anthony Behar)

Last week, a conservative watch dog group released 725 pages of emails that it obtained through a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request. The emails released were not from Hillary Clinton, but instead from Clinton’s top aide Huma Abedin. The group, Judicial Watch, claims that the emails prove that donors to the Clinton Foundation were given preferential treatment and special access to Clinton. In fact, the emails reveal that while Clinton Foundation executive Doug Band attempts to set up meetings for donors with Clinton, Abedin is reluctant to do so or offers to set up meetings through official channels.

Clinton campaign spokesman Josh Schwerin responded to the release saying, “Once again this right-wing organization that has been going after the Clintons since the 1990s is distorting facts to make utterly false attacks. No matter how this group tries to mischaracterize these documents, the fact remains that Hillary Clinton never took action as secretary of State because of donations to the Clinton Foundation.” A full set of the emails can be downloaded HERE.

View this document on Scribd

For all the latest, follow our Scheduled Events page and follow Clinton on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram. Also, be sure to subscribe to the campaign’s official Podcast, With Her.

News Source: USA Today, The Hill, The Washington Post

Reviewing Hillary Clinton’s Schedule as Secretary of State

Over the past week, several news outlets have been reviewing Hillary Clinton’s daily schedule as Secretary of State. The 3,721 page document was released by the State Department and includes Clinton’s daily schedule from January 22, 2009 to June 30, 2011. Clinton left the State Department in February 2012, and the rest of her daily schedule will be released later this year.

The schedule is interesting because of it’s detail. It is a minute-by-minute account of Clinton’s time as Secretary of State. The schedule includes names of people she met with, countries she visited, and when she was in her office. The report has revealed that Clinton met with a number of people in an official capacity (heads of state, diplomats, etc.), and she met with a number of guests including Bill and Melinda Gates, actor Ben Affleck, and musician Jon Bon Jovi. Clinton has been criticized recently for allegedly meeting with donors to the Clinton Foundation, and some have suggested that Clinton’s time was for sale via donations to the foundation. While there is some overlap between those Clinton met with and donors to the foundation, there is no evidence that any influence was bought.

What the schedule provides is an intimate look at the life of the most traveled Secretary of State in the history of the post. Of course, there were a number of redactions made the State Department, but the extreme detail is interesting to read. A copy of the schedule is embedded below and a full PDF copy can be downloaded HERE.

For all the latest, follow our Scheduled Events page and follow Clinton on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram. Also, be sure to subscribe to the campaign’s official Podcast, With Her.

News Source: CNBC, The Washington Post, CNN

HFA Statement on Donald Trump’s Clinton Foundation Attacks

Hillary for America responded to comments made about the Clinton Foundation. The group announced that if Hillary Clinton is elected president, it would stop accepting foreign donations. Trump called for the foundation to be shut down and the money returned to donors. The response from HFA is below.

“The Foundation has already laid out the unprecedented steps the charity will take if Hillary Clinton becomes president. Donald Trump needs to come clean with voters about his complex network of for-profit businesses that are hundreds of millions of dollars in debt to big banks, including the state-owned Bank of China, and other business groups with ties to the Kremlin. Donald Trump should stop hiding behind fake excuses and release his tax returns and immediately disclose the full extent of his business interests. He must commit to fully divesting himself from all of his business conflicts to ensure that he is not letting his own financial interests affect decisions made by his potential administration.”

For all the latest, follow our Scheduled Events page and follow Clinton on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram. Also, be sure to subscribe to the campaign’s official Podcast, With Her.

News Source: CNN, The Los Angeles Times

Clinton Campaign Calls for Trump’s Tax Returns

On Thursday, Hillary for America released information and a new television ad calling the lack of tax returns from Donald Trump into question. While Hillary Clinton and Tim Kaine have made their tax returns public, Trump has yet to do so. View the ad and read the HFA’s release below.

Donald Trump’s Tax Returns: What’s He Hiding?

For 40 years, major party nominees have publicly released their tax returns – a simple and basic disclosure, made to the American people as they determine which candidate is best fit for the presidency. In accordance with this decades-old tradition, Hillary Clinton has made nearly 40 years of tax returns available to the public over the course of her career, dating back to 1977. You can find the past 9 years of her returns here.

Unfortunately, Donald Trump refuses to release his tax returns, despite his promise in 2014 that he “absolutely” would release them if he ran for president. Watch Trump promise to release his returns here.

TRUMP: “If I decide to run for office, I’ll produce my tax returns, absolutely, and I would love to do that.” 

Of course, Trump changed his mind when he actually became a candidate for president.

TRUMP: “I want to release my tax returns but I can’t release it while I’m under an audit.”

TRUMP: “There’s nothing to learn from them.”

TRUMP: “It’s none of your business.”

Contradicting his own logic, Trump has released his tax returns while under audit in the past – when the disclosure of his tax returns would benefit his business interests – such as his application for a license to open a casino.

CNN: “Donald Trump insists he won’t release his tax returns during his 2016 presidential run because those returns are the subject of ongoing Internal Revenue Service audits.  When he’s had casinos on the line, it’s been a different story.”

Further, Trump has the ability to slow down the audit of his tax returns depending on his rate of response to the IRS – meaning he may be able to make his poor excuse, that his audit prevents his tax return disclosure, last as long as he wants.

WSJ: “Donald Trump says he will release his tax returns when an IRS audit concludes… the Republican presidential nominee omits one major point: He and his attorneys have substantial knowledge about when the audit will end and some ability to slow the process.”

Considering Trump has released his taxes under audit before, and his actions determine the speed at which the IRS can complete the audit, why won’t Trump release his tax returns and what is he hiding? Here’s a few theories:

1. Trump may not be worth the $10 billion that he claims
2. Trump may pay little to no income tax
3. Trump is deeply in debt and owes a hundred million to a foreign bank
4. Trump wrongly under values his properties to local tax men
5. Trump is making a “flood of cash” from running for president
6. Trump is taking tax breaks he shouldn’t
7. Trump is hiding his lack of charitable donations

Here’s 5 FACTS we know about Trump’s tax returns:

1. In multiple years in which we know Trump’s tax rate, he paid a rate of 0%
2. Trump promised millions in charity, but reportedly gave less than $10,000 over a period of 7 years
3. Trump has accepted a grant intended for small businesses affected by 9/11
4. Trump has repeated accepted a tax break intended for middle-class people
5. Trump might not even be undergoing an audit in the first place – and he refuses to present a letter from the IRS, sent to every individual who is audited, to prove it

Prominent Republicans question what Trump is hiding in his tax returns:

George Will: “Perhaps one more reason why we’re not seeing his tax returns is because he is deeply involved in dealing with Russian oligarchs.”

Mitt Romney: “Either he’s not anywhere near as wealthy as he says he is” or “There’s a bombshell in Donald Trump’s taxes.”

Mark Sanford: “I Support You, Donald Trump. Now Release Your Tax Returns.”

Is there ANY way to make Trump release his tax returns?  Yesterday, Senate Finance Committee Ranking Member Ron Wyden and Senate Foreign Relations Committee Member Chris Murphy are calling for the Senate to vote on their bill, the Presidential Tax Transparency Act, to require presidential nominees to release their tax returns after their conventions.

In the meantime, media, pundits, and Americans across the country continue to challenge Trump to release his tax returns.

New York Times: Letters to the Editor: “Why Won’t Trump Release His Taxes?”

Washington Post Editorial: “Even Mike Pence appears to disagree with Trump on releasing tax returns”

Huffington Post: “Even Donald Trump’s Supporters Are Telling Him To Release His Tax Returns”

For all the latest, follow our Scheduled Events page and follow Clinton on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram. Also, be sure to subscribe to the campaign’s official Podcast, With Her.

Clintons Campaign on Eve of NH Primary

On the eve of the New Hampshire primary, Hillary, Bill, and Chelsea Clinton attended events across the state drumming up last minute support. Bill attended a Get Out the Vote event in Rochester. During the event, Bill went after Bernie Sanders and criticized his tactics saying, “You can’t have a debate with somebody if every time you raise the question, ‘Oh, you’re part of the establishment, you’re attacking me.’ All we need is a conversation about what policies are best and who has the best chance of enacting them and I trust the voters.”

All three Clintons attended events in Manchester and Hudson. During her speeches, Hillary defended her record, specifically her ties to Wall Street. She pointed out that Sanders has been the recipient of Wall Street money as well. She said, “You know, Senator Sanders took about $200,000 from Wall Street firms, not directly, but through the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. There nothing wrong with that. It hasn’t changed his view. It hasn’t changed my view or my vote either.” Videos from today’s events will be posted when/if available.

While Clinton is trailing in the Democratic primary polls, the weather is going to be snowy and cold, which could affect turnout. The Clinton campaign has seized on the opportunity to offer rides to the polls. Today she said, “I think Granite Staters are pretty hardy. Obviously, if roads are slick, people will have to be careful. I hope that we’ll be able to help. Anybody who needs a ride to the polls, call my campaign. We’ll be happy to get you there. We’ve got a great organization ready to turn out as many voters as possible.”

Results from the primary will be posted tomorrow night. For all the latest, follow our revamped Scheduled Events page and follow Clinton on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

News Source: The New York Times, The Washington Post, WMUR

Clinton Releases Campaign Finance Plan

Today, Hillary Rodham Clinton released her plan for campaign finance reform. In a release on her website, Clinton outlined points to her plan to cut untraceable money and the influence of wealthy individuals and corporations from politics. The proposal has three main points. First, overturn the Citizens United ruling by appointing Supreme Court Justices dedicated to overturning it and passing a Constitutional amendment. Next, end the flow of unaccountable money that requires public disclosure of donations and spending by outside organizations, requiring publicly traded companies to disclose contributions, and require all federal government contractors to report all political spending. Finally, she hopes to make the voices of everyday Americans heard over those who contribute large amounts by enacting a donor matching program, lower contribution limits, and enforce all campaign finance laws.

The goal of the plan is to ensure that average Americans have a voice in choosing their elected leaders and not allowing those with the deepest pockets to call the shots. Clinton has been a critic of the Citizens United ruling. Clinton’s campaign released a video (above), and you can read the full details of Clinton’s plan by clicking HERE.

Tonight, ABC will air an interview by David Muir with Clinton that will cover a number of topics including the agreement with Iran, her use of a private email server as Secretary of State, and her campaign. Details from the interview will be posted later this evening.

News Source: Time, The New York Times, The Briefing

Hillary For America Updates Website

Hillary for America has updated its website with two new pages. The first is the addition of an Events page where you can search for Hillary for America organization events in your area. You can search by state, city, or zip code to locate events near you. The Events page is a great way to keep in touch with local Clinton supporters and track events in your hometown.

The second addition to the site is a page called The Briefing. As John Podesta wrote in a memo, The Briefing was created to debunk information presented by Republicans and others opposing Clinton. First up is Peter Schweizer’s book, Clinton Cash. The book is advertised as the inside story of foreign donations made to the Clinton Foundation during Clinton’s time as Secretary of State. Many of the allegations have been disproven, but the campaign has vowed to take the claims head-on. You can sign up to receive email updates from The Briefing and can follow its Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube pages for all the latest. The first on the site was from Clinton’s press secretary, Brian Fallon. The video is also available below.

Today, Clinton was in Las Vegas and spoke on a variety of topics including immigration. When today’s appearances are complete, a wrap-up will be posted. In the meantime, you can follow Clinton’s campaign stop in Nevada on Twitter and Facebook.