http://abcnews.go.com/Business/dona...ods-accusing-china-stealing/story?id=31826791
In his campaign kickoff on Tuesday, Donald Trump blasted cheap Chinese goods — but he has no problem putting his name on them and selling them.
The day after his tirade, the Trump Store inside the Trump Tower on Fifth Avenue in New York boasted an array of imported goods, including teddy bears and T-shirts from China alongside products from Haiti, Nicaragua and Lesotho.
Trump mentioned China two-dozen times in the opener to his 2016 presidential bid, accusing that country and Mexico of putting Americans out of work."They can’t get jobs, because there are no jobs, because China has our jobs and Mexico has our jobs," Trump said.
“When was the last time anybody saw us beating, let’s say, China in a trade deal? They kill us. I beat China all the time. All the time,” Trump said.
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.........of course you do, Donald
when do the debates start, god damn it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
In his campaign kickoff on Tuesday, Donald Trump blasted cheap Chinese goods — but he has no problem putting his name on them and selling them.
The day after his tirade, the Trump Store inside the Trump Tower on Fifth Avenue in New York boasted an array of imported goods, including teddy bears and T-shirts from China alongside products from Haiti, Nicaragua and Lesotho.
Trump mentioned China two-dozen times in the opener to his 2016 presidential bid, accusing that country and Mexico of putting Americans out of work."They can’t get jobs, because there are no jobs, because China has our jobs and Mexico has our jobs," Trump said.
“When was the last time anybody saw us beating, let’s say, China in a trade deal? They kill us. I beat China all the time. All the time,” Trump said.
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.........of course you do, Donald
when do the debates start, god damn it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Here is some of the simplistic shit, that Trump didn’t say.
If you like your health plan you can keep it.
If you like your doctor you can keep your doctor.
There is not a even smidgen of corruption at the IRS.
Benghazi violence was caused by an internet video & demonstrations.
You didn’t build that.
I’ve done more for Israel’s security than any President ever.
The fence between US and Mexico is practically complete.
We have run out of places in the US to drill for oil.
Doctors choose amputation because they get better compensation. Greedy Doctors taking out tonsils for more money.
Health Care deals will be covered on C-span.
I will have the most transparent administration in History.
We will go through our federal budget – page by page, line by line – eliminating those programs we don’t need, and insisting that those we do operate in a sensible cost-effective way.
I have visited all 57 states.
I’ll get rid of earmarks in any bill passed during presidency.
When a bill lands on my desk, The American people will have 5 days to review it before I sign it.
My father served in World War II.
I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.
The great wall of Mexico
The world is dumping its problems on America, according to Mr Trump, none more so than Mexico. “They're bringing drugs. They're bringing crime. They're rapists,” he said, before briefly admitting that some might be good people. The solution for a property and construction tycoon is simple. “I would build a great wall, and nobody builds walls better than me, believe me, and I'll build them very inexpensively, I will build a great, great wall on our southern border. And I will have Mexico pay for that wall.”
“We have to rebuild our infrastructure, our bridges, our roadways, our airports. You come into La Guardia Airport, it's like we're in a third world country. You look at the patches and the 40-year-old floor.” And when it is all visible from the VIP suite and your $100m private 757 then you know that the problems must be really bad.
There were few clues about how Mr Trump plans to take on the threat of Islamic terrorism, other than that he would be very good at it. “Nobody would be tougher on Isil than Donald Trump,” he said. “Nobody.” Which means the best clue we have about the policy specifics is what he told The Des Moines Register, one of Iowa's major newspapers. “I have an absolute way of defeating Isil, and it would be decisive and quick and it would be very beautiful. Very surgical.” Only he can't describe it for fear someone else will pinch the idea.
[h=3]A protected free market for Americans[/h]
“I'm a free trader. But the problem with free trade is you need really talented people to negotiate for you.” So here's how Mr Trump would negotiate with Ford if it unveiled plans for a massive plant in Mexico on his watch: “I'd call up Ford and say: 'Let me give you the bad news. Every car and every truck and every part manufactured in this plant that comes across the border, we're going to charge you a 35 per cent tax, and that tax is going to be paid simultaneously with the transaction, and that's it.” The head of Ford would call back within an hour – or the next day if playing it cool - and the negotiations would consist of Mr Trump hanging up.
“I'm a free trader. But the problem with free trade is you need really talented people to negotiate for you.” So here's how Mr Trump would negotiate with Ford if it unveiled plans for a massive plant in Mexico on his watch: “I'd call up Ford and say: 'Let me give you the bad news. Every car and every truck and every part manufactured in this plant that comes across the border, we're going to charge you a 35 per cent tax, and that tax is going to be paid simultaneously with the transaction, and that's it.” The head of Ford would call back within an hour – or the next day if playing it cool - and the negotiations would consist of Mr Trump hanging up.
Tough on Iran and tough on bike races
[/SUB]
“I will stop Iran from getting nuclear weapons. And we won't be using a man like Secretary Kerry that has absolutely no concept of negotiation, who's making a horrible and laughable deal, who's just being tapped along as they make weapons right now, and then goes into a bicycle race at 72 years old, and falls and breaks his leg.
“I won't be doing that. And I promise I will never be in a bicycle race. That I can tell you.”
[h=3]Restore the American dream[/h]If there was one key message, it was simply that the American dream is dead and Mr Trump is the one man to revive it by reclaiming off-shored jobs, paying down the debt and keeping China at bay. “... if I get elected president I will bring it back bigger and better and stronger than ever before, and we will make America great again,” he said, before marching off triumphantly to the strains of Rockin' in the Free World by Neil Young, who is well known for being, erm, Canadian. And not very Republican.
Source URL: http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/donald-trump-campaign-offered-actors-803161
[h=1]Donald Trump Campaign Offered Actors $50 to Cheer for Him at Presidential Announcement[/h] 2:53 PM PDT 6/17/2015 by Aaron Couch, Emmet McDermott
[1]
AP Images
[h=2]A casting call was sent out last week "looking to cast people for the event to wear t-shirts and carry signs and help cheer him in support of his announcement."[/h] Donald Trump's big presidential announcement [2] Tuesday was made a little bigger with help from paid actors — at $50 a pop.
New York-based Extra Mile Casting sent an email last Friday to its client list of background actors, seeking extras to beef up attendance at Trump's event.
"We are looking to cast people for the event to wear t-shirts and carry signs and help cheer him in support of his announcement," reads the June 12 email, obtained by The Hollywood Reporter. "We understand this is not a traditional 'background job,' but we believe acting comes in all forms and this is inclusive of that school of thought." (Read the full email at the bottom of the post.)
Questions as to whether to Trump campaign had hired extras were first raised Wednesday by anti-Trump activist [7] Angelo Carusone, who came across an Instagram photo showing a man he recognized as a background actor posing at the Trump event. Carusone screengrabbed the photo of the actor, Domenico Del Giacco, and published it in a blog post [8]. The photo shows Del Giacco with a woman, identified in the now-deleted Instagram post as actress Courtney Klotz. (Del Giacco has since deleted his entire Instagram account.)
When reached for comment about the Trump casting call, a person who answered the phone at Extra Mile said, "We don't know anything about that." When pressed about whether this response was a denial of the story, the person said she couldn't comment further and hung up. Additional calls to Extra Mile went unanswered.
Asked if Trump paid anyone to attend the event, campaign manager Corey Lewandowski said "no," and that he had never heard of Extra Mile or Gotham GR.
"Mr. Trump draws record crowds at almost every venue at which he is a featured speaker," Lewandowski told The Hollywood Reporter. "The crowds are large, often record-setting and enthusiastic, often with standing ovations. Mr. Trump's message is, 'Make America great again.' "
Read More Jon Stewart Rejoices at Donald Trump Presidential Campaign: "There's a Crazy Person Running" [9]
Del Giacco and Klotz did not respond to a request for comment.
In politics, "astroturfing" is when people are hired to attend a rally or event in order to lend the appearance of grassroots support. They are typically contracted out to political consulting firms, much like Gotham GR. The practice is unsurprisingly considered bad form.
Here's the full email from Extra Mile, with contact information redacted.
Hi there—
We are working helping one of are [sic] associates out at Gotham GR - http://gothamgr.com/ [10] with a big event happening on TUESDAY 6/16/15.
This is an event in support of Donald Trump and an upcoming exciting announcement he will be making at this event.
This event is called “People for a Stronger America.” The entire group is a pro-small business group that is dedicated to encouraging Donald Trump and his latest ventures. This event will be televised.
We are looking to cast people for the event to wear t-shirts and carry signs and help cheer him in support of his announcement.
We understand this is not a traditional “background job,” but we believe acting comes in all forms and this is inclusive of that school of thought.
This event is happening LIVE and will be from 8:45AM-11:30AM. LESS THAN 3 HOURS
This will take place inside / interior.
The rate for this is: $50 CASH at the end of the event.
We would love to book you if you are interested and still available.
Please let us know and we will get back to you with confirmation.
<em>
[h=1]Donald Trump Campaign Offered Actors $50 to Cheer for Him at Presidential Announcement[/h] 2:53 PM PDT 6/17/2015 by Aaron Couch, Emmet McDermott
- 7K
- 810
- 52
[1]
AP Images
[h=2]A casting call was sent out last week "looking to cast people for the event to wear t-shirts and carry signs and help cheer him in support of his announcement."[/h] Donald Trump's big presidential announcement [2] Tuesday was made a little bigger with help from paid actors — at $50 a pop.
New York-based Extra Mile Casting sent an email last Friday to its client list of background actors, seeking extras to beef up attendance at Trump's event.
"We are looking to cast people for the event to wear t-shirts and carry signs and help cheer him in support of his announcement," reads the June 12 email, obtained by The Hollywood Reporter. "We understand this is not a traditional 'background job,' but we believe acting comes in all forms and this is inclusive of that school of thought." (Read the full email at the bottom of the post.)
.@realDonaldTrump [3] staffer not too pumped i took pic of "homemade" signs (passed out to people before event) in trash pic.twitter.com/zLL2ETBI79 [4]
— Megan Specia (@meganspecia) June 16, 2015 [5]
The pay was listed as $50 for less than three hours of work. According to the email, Extra Mile was reaching out to potential extras in partnership with Gotham Government Relations and Communications, a New York-Based political consulting group that has worked with Trump [6] in the past. Gotham GR had no comment.— Megan Specia (@meganspecia) June 16, 2015 [5]
Questions as to whether to Trump campaign had hired extras were first raised Wednesday by anti-Trump activist [7] Angelo Carusone, who came across an Instagram photo showing a man he recognized as a background actor posing at the Trump event. Carusone screengrabbed the photo of the actor, Domenico Del Giacco, and published it in a blog post [8]. The photo shows Del Giacco with a woman, identified in the now-deleted Instagram post as actress Courtney Klotz. (Del Giacco has since deleted his entire Instagram account.)
When reached for comment about the Trump casting call, a person who answered the phone at Extra Mile said, "We don't know anything about that." When pressed about whether this response was a denial of the story, the person said she couldn't comment further and hung up. Additional calls to Extra Mile went unanswered.
Asked if Trump paid anyone to attend the event, campaign manager Corey Lewandowski said "no," and that he had never heard of Extra Mile or Gotham GR.
"Mr. Trump draws record crowds at almost every venue at which he is a featured speaker," Lewandowski told The Hollywood Reporter. "The crowds are large, often record-setting and enthusiastic, often with standing ovations. Mr. Trump's message is, 'Make America great again.' "
Read More Jon Stewart Rejoices at Donald Trump Presidential Campaign: "There's a Crazy Person Running" [9]
Del Giacco and Klotz did not respond to a request for comment.
In politics, "astroturfing" is when people are hired to attend a rally or event in order to lend the appearance of grassroots support. They are typically contracted out to political consulting firms, much like Gotham GR. The practice is unsurprisingly considered bad form.
Here's the full email from Extra Mile, with contact information redacted.
Hi there—
We are working helping one of are [sic] associates out at Gotham GR - http://gothamgr.com/ [10] with a big event happening on TUESDAY 6/16/15.
This is an event in support of Donald Trump and an upcoming exciting announcement he will be making at this event.
This event is called “People for a Stronger America.” The entire group is a pro-small business group that is dedicated to encouraging Donald Trump and his latest ventures. This event will be televised.
We are looking to cast people for the event to wear t-shirts and carry signs and help cheer him in support of his announcement.
We understand this is not a traditional “background job,” but we believe acting comes in all forms and this is inclusive of that school of thought.
This event is happening LIVE and will be from 8:45AM-11:30AM. LESS THAN 3 HOURS
This will take place inside / interior.
The rate for this is: $50 CASH at the end of the event.
We would love to book you if you are interested and still available.
Please let us know and we will get back to you with confirmation.
<em>
"When pressed on the issues, he sank" LMFAO
As if your unvetted Hope and Change community organizer ever ran on substance or issues.
Seriously, what planet do you live on? Herman Cain was forced out because of an alleged extramarital affair. I use the word alleged because nothing was ever presented or proven - typical gaystream media bullshit.
Meanwhile...
Hypocrisy is The Guesser's middle name.
Comparing Cain to Don Trump, just because they when entering the contest were political rookies is
silly. it's like comparing Secretariat to Milk Wagon Joe.
It's a valid comparison when comparing the simplistic, sound bite stuff they say, that attracts the really dumb, low information, Fox News crowd, that eats that shit up. Their rise to the top of the polls will be comparable, as will their fall. They will both surge like Secratariat in their early campaigns, and they will both be Milk Wagon Joe's in the end of the POTUS sweepstakes.
Will Trump still be a Candidate on Dec 17th. I'll say no. Lets all enjoy the circus while it's still in town.
[h=1]Is Donald Trump really, actually running for president? We may not know till December.[/h] By Amber Phillips June 17 at 4:39 PM
Donald Trump runs for president or something. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
You might have heard, Donald Trump is running for president.
But Trump running for president is kind of like that kid in high school who says his girlfriend lives in Canada and can't make it to the prom but shows you a picture of his girlfriend in front of a maple leaf flag to prove she's real (and Canadian).
And Trump hasn't actually brought his maybe-fake Canadian girlfriend to the prom yet. So plenty of people are wondering if he'll actually do the things that real presidential candidates do -- like disclose the details of his finances -- or just back out and prove one and for all that this was all some massive ruse (as opposed to the already-sizable ruse that it already is).
So we though we'd help him. Here, Mr. Future President Trump, is exactly what you'd have to do to prove you're dating someone -- I mean, to prove you're running for president.
1. Spend $5,000 on your candidacy
Once you do this, according to the Federal Election Commission, the law considers you a candidate. You can also receive $5,000 for your campaign to become a candidate. Mr. Trump, we know you said you'll finance your own own election -- "I'm rich," you reminded us Tuesday -- and we're pretty sure your elaborate announcement at New York's Trump Tower where you rode down an escalator to wave to tourists you lured from the streets to cheer you on and rambled for 1,700 words in front of really blue TRUMP signs cost more than $5,000.
[Donald Trump's spectacular, often baffling, often wrong campaign launch]
So, Mr. Trump, you have probably already passed this threshold. Well done.
Make or break date for Trump: The start of your candidacy was June 16, FYI.
2. Fill out a form.
As The Fix's own Philip Bump noted, the next step to running for president is to simply fill out a form with the FEC.
[How to run for president in 4 easy steps]
There are 396 people who have filled out the FEC Presidential 2016 Form; Mr. Trump, we noticed you are not yet one of them. You have 15 days from announcing your candidacy to fill it out and get it to the FEC. Well, 14 now.
Make or break date for Trump: June 30.
3. Make a Trump for President committee
Within 10 days of filing your presidential form, you need to put together a campaign committee and announce its organization to the FEC. Mr. Trump, we see you also haven't done this yet. Here's the form.
Make or break date for Trump: July 10.
4. Share your finances
No, "I'm rich" does not count.
Nor does announcing to the media you have $9 billion in assets -- which, as Bump notes, is far from having $9 billion in actual cash you can spend willy nilly to become president. (Trump said Tuesday that he has more than $8 billion -- or "biyyion" in Trumpspeak -- in net worth, when you factor in his debts.)
You have to file what's called a personal finance disclosure form within 30 days of announcing your candidacy.
The forms require you to list all your sources of incomes and all your assets and liabilities. But lucky for you, the forms were created by members of Congress, who also have to file them, so they're pretty vague.
You can list your assets and liabilities in ridiculously broad ranges, like from $500,000-$1 million. Here's a good story about the problems with personal finance disclosure forms from Bloomberg's Richard Rubin, if you care to change this when you become president, Mr. Trump.
Make or break date for Trump: You can file for up to 90 days of an extension on this, so the latest you could file your personal finance disclosure form would be four months from the start of your candidacy, or Dec. 16.
And this is the big one for Trump. Skeptics that he would actually run suggested he would never disclose his finances in this way. We'll find out by a couple months before the first primaries, it turns out.
5. Get on the ballot in all the states
This is the hardest part of running for president. The GOP field is competitive (especially since you're in it), so again, here's some free advice, Mr. Trump: You'll probably need to be on the ballot for the Republican primaries and caucuses in all 50 states if you want to win enough delegates to move on to the general election.
Why is this so hard? Each state has its own set of rules for how to go about that. They're designed to make it tough for random people to run for president -- not that that's you. In California in 2012, for instance, Bump reported candidates for president had to get "either 1 percent or 500 signatures (whichever was lower) from Democrats in each of the state's 50-plus congressional districts. They had two months to do so."
In 2012, Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich, who finished second and third in the Republican nominating contest, both nonetheless failed to qualify for the ballot in some states.
Make or break date for Trump: The dates vary. Consult with a really good campaign finance lawyer. We're sure you can afford it
[h=1]Is Donald Trump really, actually running for president? We may not know till December.[/h] By Amber Phillips June 17 at 4:39 PM
Donald Trump runs for president or something. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
You might have heard, Donald Trump is running for president.
But Trump running for president is kind of like that kid in high school who says his girlfriend lives in Canada and can't make it to the prom but shows you a picture of his girlfriend in front of a maple leaf flag to prove she's real (and Canadian).
And Trump hasn't actually brought his maybe-fake Canadian girlfriend to the prom yet. So plenty of people are wondering if he'll actually do the things that real presidential candidates do -- like disclose the details of his finances -- or just back out and prove one and for all that this was all some massive ruse (as opposed to the already-sizable ruse that it already is).
So we though we'd help him. Here, Mr. Future President Trump, is exactly what you'd have to do to prove you're dating someone -- I mean, to prove you're running for president.
1. Spend $5,000 on your candidacy
Once you do this, according to the Federal Election Commission, the law considers you a candidate. You can also receive $5,000 for your campaign to become a candidate. Mr. Trump, we know you said you'll finance your own own election -- "I'm rich," you reminded us Tuesday -- and we're pretty sure your elaborate announcement at New York's Trump Tower where you rode down an escalator to wave to tourists you lured from the streets to cheer you on and rambled for 1,700 words in front of really blue TRUMP signs cost more than $5,000.
[Donald Trump's spectacular, often baffling, often wrong campaign launch]
So, Mr. Trump, you have probably already passed this threshold. Well done.
Make or break date for Trump: The start of your candidacy was June 16, FYI.
2. Fill out a form.
As The Fix's own Philip Bump noted, the next step to running for president is to simply fill out a form with the FEC.
[How to run for president in 4 easy steps]
There are 396 people who have filled out the FEC Presidential 2016 Form; Mr. Trump, we noticed you are not yet one of them. You have 15 days from announcing your candidacy to fill it out and get it to the FEC. Well, 14 now.
Make or break date for Trump: June 30.
3. Make a Trump for President committee
Within 10 days of filing your presidential form, you need to put together a campaign committee and announce its organization to the FEC. Mr. Trump, we see you also haven't done this yet. Here's the form.
Make or break date for Trump: July 10.
4. Share your finances
No, "I'm rich" does not count.
Nor does announcing to the media you have $9 billion in assets -- which, as Bump notes, is far from having $9 billion in actual cash you can spend willy nilly to become president. (Trump said Tuesday that he has more than $8 billion -- or "biyyion" in Trumpspeak -- in net worth, when you factor in his debts.)
You have to file what's called a personal finance disclosure form within 30 days of announcing your candidacy.
The forms require you to list all your sources of incomes and all your assets and liabilities. But lucky for you, the forms were created by members of Congress, who also have to file them, so they're pretty vague.
You can list your assets and liabilities in ridiculously broad ranges, like from $500,000-$1 million. Here's a good story about the problems with personal finance disclosure forms from Bloomberg's Richard Rubin, if you care to change this when you become president, Mr. Trump.
Make or break date for Trump: You can file for up to 90 days of an extension on this, so the latest you could file your personal finance disclosure form would be four months from the start of your candidacy, or Dec. 16.
And this is the big one for Trump. Skeptics that he would actually run suggested he would never disclose his finances in this way. We'll find out by a couple months before the first primaries, it turns out.
5. Get on the ballot in all the states
This is the hardest part of running for president. The GOP field is competitive (especially since you're in it), so again, here's some free advice, Mr. Trump: You'll probably need to be on the ballot for the Republican primaries and caucuses in all 50 states if you want to win enough delegates to move on to the general election.
Why is this so hard? Each state has its own set of rules for how to go about that. They're designed to make it tough for random people to run for president -- not that that's you. In California in 2012, for instance, Bump reported candidates for president had to get "either 1 percent or 500 signatures (whichever was lower) from Democrats in each of the state's 50-plus congressional districts. They had two months to do so."
In 2012, Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich, who finished second and third in the Republican nominating contest, both nonetheless failed to qualify for the ballot in some states.
Make or break date for Trump: The dates vary. Consult with a really good campaign finance lawyer. We're sure you can afford it
Now here is a great idea by Trump. Hopefully he revives it:
[FONT=Helvetica, Arial, Sans-serif][h=2]Trump proposes massive one-time tax on the rich[/h][h=4]By Phil Hirschkorn/CNN[/h][/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]November 9, 1999
Web posted at: 6:24 p.m. EST (2324 GMT)[/FONT]
NEW YORK (CNN) -- Billionaire businessman Donald Trump has a plan to pay off the national debt, grant a middle class a tax cut, and keep Social Security afloat: tax rich people like himself.
Trump, a prospective candidate for the Reform Party presidential nomination, is proposing a one-time "net worth tax" on individuals and trusts worth $10 million or more.
By Trump's calculations, his proposed 14.25 percent levy on such net worth would raise $5.7 trillion and wipe out the debt in one full swoop.
The U.S. national debt decreased by $9.7 billion in September but remains at $5.66 trillion, according to the latest U.S. Treasury figures.
The net worth tax is the cornerstone of Trump's economic plan released Tuesday morning.
"No one has put forward a plan to make this country entirely debt free as we enter the next millenium," Trump said in a written statement.
"The plan I am proposing today does not involve smoke and mirrors, phony numbers, financial gimmicks, or the usual economic chicanery you usually find in Disneyland-on-the-Potomac," Trump said.
Trump would exempt the value of an individual's principal home from the net worth total.
"By my calculations, 1 percent of Americans, who control 90 percent of the wealth in this country, would be affected by my plan," Trump said.
"The other 99 percent of the people would get deep reductions in their federal income taxes," he said.
Eliminating the national debt would save the federal government $200 billion a year in interest payments, Trump said. He proposes to earmark half the savings for middle class tax cuts, and the other half for Social Security.
Trump said depositing $100 billion annually in the Social Security trust fund would generate $3 trillion "over the next 30-years, when the trust fund is scheduled to go broke" and instead keep the fund "solvent through the next century."
The tax also would lead to the repeal the current federal inheritance tax "which really hurts farmers and small businessman and women more than anything else," Trump said.
Trump, whose own net worth is an estimated $5 billion, says the wealthy would not suffer if his economic plan were enacted.
"Personally this plan would cost me hundreds of millions of dollars, but in all honesty, it's worth it," Trump said.
Trump predicts his debt elimination combined with his tax cuts would trigger a 35 to 40 percent boost in economic activity, with more business start-ups, more jobs, and more prosperity.
"It is a win-win for the American people, an idea no conventional politician would have the guts to put forward," Trump said.
Last month, Trump formed a committee to explore seeking the presidential nomination of the Reform Party, which will automatically be on the ballot in 21 states next year.
[FONT=Helvetica, Arial, Sans-serif][h=2]Trump proposes massive one-time tax on the rich[/h][h=4]By Phil Hirschkorn/CNN[/h][/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]November 9, 1999
Web posted at: 6:24 p.m. EST (2324 GMT)[/FONT]
NEW YORK (CNN) -- Billionaire businessman Donald Trump has a plan to pay off the national debt, grant a middle class a tax cut, and keep Social Security afloat: tax rich people like himself.
Trump, a prospective candidate for the Reform Party presidential nomination, is proposing a one-time "net worth tax" on individuals and trusts worth $10 million or more.
| [FONT=arial,helvetica] MESSAGE BOARD[/FONT] | |
| ||
The U.S. national debt decreased by $9.7 billion in September but remains at $5.66 trillion, according to the latest U.S. Treasury figures.
The net worth tax is the cornerstone of Trump's economic plan released Tuesday morning.
"No one has put forward a plan to make this country entirely debt free as we enter the next millenium," Trump said in a written statement.
"The plan I am proposing today does not involve smoke and mirrors, phony numbers, financial gimmicks, or the usual economic chicanery you usually find in Disneyland-on-the-Potomac," Trump said.
Trump would exempt the value of an individual's principal home from the net worth total.
"By my calculations, 1 percent of Americans, who control 90 percent of the wealth in this country, would be affected by my plan," Trump said.
"The other 99 percent of the people would get deep reductions in their federal income taxes," he said.
Eliminating the national debt would save the federal government $200 billion a year in interest payments, Trump said. He proposes to earmark half the savings for middle class tax cuts, and the other half for Social Security.
Trump said depositing $100 billion annually in the Social Security trust fund would generate $3 trillion "over the next 30-years, when the trust fund is scheduled to go broke" and instead keep the fund "solvent through the next century."
The tax also would lead to the repeal the current federal inheritance tax "which really hurts farmers and small businessman and women more than anything else," Trump said.
Trump, whose own net worth is an estimated $5 billion, says the wealthy would not suffer if his economic plan were enacted.
"Personally this plan would cost me hundreds of millions of dollars, but in all honesty, it's worth it," Trump said.
Trump predicts his debt elimination combined with his tax cuts would trigger a 35 to 40 percent boost in economic activity, with more business start-ups, more jobs, and more prosperity.
"It is a win-win for the American people, an idea no conventional politician would have the guts to put forward," Trump said.
Last month, Trump formed a committee to explore seeking the presidential nomination of the Reform Party, which will automatically be on the ballot in 21 states next year.
