The Never-ending Grift
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Trump Hotels and Casino Resorts
Launched to much fanfare in 1995, Trump took Trump Hotels and Casino Resorts public, attracting $140 million in stock purchases from investors betting big on the well-known real estate tycoon.
However, with Trump at the helm, holdings went from a single Atlantic City Casino to quickly snatching up debt-burdened Taj Mahal and a third Atlantic City casino, both previously owned by the now-president himself.
A number of personal loans borrowed from the company followed suit, according to a Forbes report, and eventually, the company lost $647 million from 1995 through 2004, when it declared bankruptcy.
Trump Entertainment Resorts
Following the initial 2004 bankruptcy, Trump Hotels and Casino Resorts was renamed as Trump Entertainment Resorts.
And while Trump was paid $2 million per year despite stepping down as CEO (after receiving an approximately $50 million for services and rents rendered during his tenure as chief over Trump Hotels and Casino Resorts), that company lost $189 million in 2007 and a further $232 million in 2008.
On Feb. 13, 2009, Trump as well as his daughter, Ivanka Trump — installed on the board in 2007 — resigned their posts. On Feb. 17, Trump Entertainment Resorts declared bankruptcy.
Today, Trump Entertainment Resorts exists as a fractional penny stock with negligible value, meaning that investors who did not sell their shares earlier would be essentially left with no value.
Trump Media & Technology Group
Trump Media & Technology Group remains in play, however, with majority ownership resting in the hands of the president. The company is most notably involved with Trump’s Truth Social social media platform, although in recent days it has been dedicated to building a substantial Bitcoin treasury reserve.
According to Benzinga, the SEC recently gave the nod of approval for Trump Media to expand upon these plans with a slated $2.3 billion capital investment, coming from more than 50 institutional investors.
Following an initial blockbuster public opening on March 26, 2024 — the first time in nearly 30 years where a portion of the president’s business empire went public, per CNN — where shares reached ~$78 before falling to rest at around $70, Trump Media’s stock price has tumbled precipitously.
As of close of trading on June 20, share prices were at $17.83.
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https://www.fastcompany.com/91352863/trump-mobile-is-here-experts-are-baffled
Trump Mobile would be an MVNO—a mobile virtual network operator—which, at present, doesn’t own any of its own infrastructure. That may be intentional, considering the risks involved. “The puzzle to me is why are they resurrecting this idea from, like, 10 years ago and trying to milk a little bit of extra money out of this,” Dediu says.
MVNOs have minimal presence in the U.S. smartphone market, holding less than a 5% share. The major providers—Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile—dominate, and they will supply the actual infrastructure for Trump phones.
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Success is far from certain. “I’m struggling to figure out why even the phone would make sense,” Dediu says. While some profit could be made on hardware sales, he notes that branding might allow a $200 device to be sold for $500, though the costs of servicing customers could quickly erode that margin.
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Well the website now says it's no longer "made in the USA", it just says "America-proud design", LOL. I do have a question, do you have to be white trash to buy it or is the phone sort of a ticket to the white trash club?
https://www.cnbc.com/2025/06/26/trump-phone-website-removes-made-in-the-usa-tag-for-the-device.html
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https://www.fastcompany.com/91352863/trump-mobile-is-here-experts-are-baffled
Trump Mobile would be an MVNO—a mobile virtual network operator—which, at present, doesn’t own any of its own infrastructure. That may be intentional, considering the risks involved. “The puzzle to me is why are they resurrecting this idea from, like, 10 years ago and trying to milk a little bit of extra money out of this,” Dediu says.
MVNOs have minimal presence in the U.S. smartphone market, holding less than a 5% share. The major providers—Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile—dominate, and they will supply the actual infrastructure for Trump phones.
and
Success is far from certain. “I’m struggling to figure out why even the phone would make sense,” Dediu says. While some profit could be made on hardware sales, he notes that branding might allow a $200 device to be sold for $500, though the costs of servicing customers could quickly erode that margin.
@taiwan_girl said in The Never-ending Grift:
“The puzzle to me is why are they resurrecting this idea from, like, 10 years ago and trying to milk a little bit of extra money out of this,” Dediu says.
He answered his own puzzle. Grifters gonna grift. Magat grifters gonna grift magats.
