Donald Trump Was ‘Black Hole’ for His Dad’s Money: New Book Author

Donald Trump was a “black hole” for his father’s money instead of the successful business owner the former president portrays himself as, according to an author of a new book.
New York Times reporter Susanne Craig made the remarks while promoting the book she wrote with her colleague Russ Buettner, Lucky Loser: How Donald Trump Squandered His Father’s Fortune and Created the Illusion of Success.
The book from Craig and Buettner, who are known for reporting on Trump’s tax returns, attempts to dismantle the notion that the former president managed to become a self-made billionaire because of his savvy business acumen and entrepreneurial skills.
Instead, the book suggests, Trump mainly relied on luck to build his wealth, and he was unable to grow the hundreds of millions of dollars he inherited from his father, Fred Trump, who died in 1999. The book also details how Trump suffered major losses, such as the closure of multiple casinos, and tax records show that his businesses lost more than $1 billion between 1985 and 1994.
Speaking to MSNBC’S Alex Wagner, Craig said that in his early years of business, Trump appropriated much of his cash from his father, while frequently suggesting he was a self-made man.
“It was as if he was robbed of a hardscrabble story, and he had to come up with one,” Craig said.
“First we see in his early business career that he appropriates his father’s wealth,” she continued. “We see news stories where he says he’s worth $200 million. It grows to a billion. He’s appropriating his father’s wealth, and then he spends a lot of his life diminishing his father’s accomplishments.”
“Donald became a black hole for Fred’s money eventually,” Craig added.
Newsweek has contacted Trump’s office for comment via email.
Buettner said that one of the “most remarkable” parts of the story of Trump’s business adventures was that his father never intervened, despite numerous failings under his son’s watch.
“He [Fred Trump] always estimates correctly what his revenue is going to be. He doesn’t spend more than that’s going to take in. All his projects make money. He’s very careful. Donald is just the opposite story,” Buettner said.
“When Donald first arrives, in about 1968, he immediately starts taking over the business. He becomes a public spokesperson for it,” he continued.
“Donald starts announcing that they’re building projects all over the place, that they’re going to build a new seaport in lower Manhattan. They’re going to build a convention center in D.C.,” Buettner added. “It’s all smoke and mirrors. None of it happens. Fred’s never done that in his life, but he goes along for the ride.”
In one segment of the book, Craig and Buettner suggest that Trump benefited from three bits of luck—being born into a wealthy family, inheriting his father’s money and becoming a reality TV star on The Apprentice—to build his wealth, rather than any business decisions.
“There is no evidence that in 50 years of labor Donald Trump added to his lucky fortunes,” they wrote. “He would have been better off betting on the stock market than on himself.”