MSNBC host Joe Scarborough insisted Thursday on “Morning Joe” that Donald Trump’s presidency has been “all about making money” and “building the Trump brand.”
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“We’ve just cut out the middle man here, and this is example 7,000 of how the Trump circle has basically attempted to line their own pockets at a time when they’re supposed to be managing and marshaling power on behalf of all of us,” said guest Jon Meacham, executive director of Random House.
“And we’ll say it again,” Joe Scarborough said, “Donald Trump didn’t expect to win, basically told us as much. He won, but, but it was all about money. They were making money, building the Trump brand, making it huge.”
“They were going to maybe start a TV network. It was, what was going to happen after they lost? Then they won, and the remarkable thing is it’s still about making money. Again I think we’re all a little naive, about how …” Scarborough continued.
“… far they’ll push the envelope,” Mika Brzezinski finished.
President Trump has lost a significant amount of money over the last year. Forbes Magazine noted he was “the most notable loser” on its list of most wealthy Americans.
Trump fell 92 spots from his position in 2016 on the Forbes’ most wealthy Americans list. His wealth fell $600 million to $3.1 billion in 2017, Forbes estimates.
Before his inauguration, the president-elect handed over the operations of his businesses to his sons, Don Jr. and Eric Trump.
The president has also said he will refuse a presidential paycheck. He donated the first quarter of his presidential salary to the National Park Service, donated his second quarter salary to the Education Department, and just recently donated his third quarter salary to the department of Health and Human Services to combat the opioid crisis.