The billion-dollar boaster: Trump’s taste for hyperbole
The former president’s ‘superpower’ could now be his undoing
Donald Trump built his brand on shameless exaggeration – or what he prefers to call “truthful hyperbole”, said Gwenda Blair on Politico. It was a feature of his first Manhattan project in the mid-1970s, when he refurbished the Grand Hyatt Hotel. To make the hotel sound even grander, he relabelled the floor numbers (the sixth became the fourteenth) and claimed, repeatedly and falsely, that it had the biggest ballroom in the city.
He repeated the trick with Trump Tower, which rises to a 68th floor, despite only having 58, and was billed – again falsely – as the tallest concrete structure in the world. But Trump’s “superpower” could now be his undoing.
Last week, New York’s attorney general, Letitia James, announced a $250m civil lawsuit against him and his company, alleging fraud on a “staggering” scale: that for years he has inflated the value of his assets by billions, in order to secure cheaper loans.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Some of the examples cited are “jaw-dropping”, said the New York Post. Trump claimed, for instance, that his apartment in Trump Tower spanned more than 30,000sq ft and was worth $327m, yet it was only a third of that size and worth a fraction of that. But Trump’s boastful ways were hardly a secret. If big banks gave him favourable rates on the basis of his claims, more fool them.
Trump would hardly be the first business leader to engage in this sort of spin, said Andrew C. McCarthy in National Review. James is making a mountain out of a molehill. She has yet to identify any victims, and it’s unclear whether her allegations “will come to much in the way of proof or consequence”.
Trump is facing two federal criminal investigations – into the storing of classified documents in Mar-a-Lago, and the efforts to overturn the 2020 election – that could result in serious charges. By comparison, this civil case is a pesky sideshow.
It’s true that the lawsuit itself won’t put Trump at risk of prison time, said Matt Ford in The New Republic. But it could do fatal damage to his company. If James’s suit prevails, it will not only lead to costly fines and penalties; it will also severely undermine The Trump Organisation, by effectively stopping it doing business in the state of New York. The fact that it is a state-level proceeding means that, even if Trump reclaims the presidency in 2024, he won’t be able to make the case go away. This makes it perhaps the most potent threat facing Trump right now
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
-
Who actually needs life insurance?
The Explainer If you have kids or are worried about passing on debt, the added security may be worth it
By Becca Stanek, The Week US Published
-
Sexual wellness trends to know, from products and therapies to retreats and hotels
The Week Recommends Talking about pleasure and sexual health is becoming less taboo
By Theara Coleman, The Week US Published
-
Is the AI bubble deflating?
Today's Big Question Growing skepticism and high costs prompt reconsideration
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
'Biden is smart to keep the border-security pressure on'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
Arizona grand jury indicts 18 in Trump fake elector plot
Speed Read The state charged Mark Meadows, Rudy Giuliani and other Trump allies in 2020 election interference case
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
'Voters know Biden and Trump all too well'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
Who will win the 2024 presidential election?
In Depth Election year is here. Who are pollsters and experts predicting to win the White House?
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
National Enquirer helped Trump in 2016, ex-boss says
Speed Read David Pecker says the tabloid published fabricated content to hurt Trump's rivals
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Sitting in judgment on Trump
Opinion Who'd want to be on this jury?
By Susan Caskie Published
-
How could the Supreme Court's Fischer v. US case impact the other Jan 6. trials including Trump's?
Today's Big Question A former Pennsylvania cop might hold the key to a major upheaval in how the courts treat the Capitol riot — and its alleged instigator
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
'A direct, protracted war with Israel is not something Iran is equipped to fight'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published