# "Trump Foundation admits to violating ban on ‘self-dealing,’ new filing to IRS shows" **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [November 23, 2016, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-foundation-admits-to-violating-ban-on-self-dealing-new-filing-to-irs-shows/772776 "2016-11-23T00:29:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2016, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-foundation-admits-to-violating-ban-on-self-dealing-new-filing-to-irs-shows/772776/1 "2016-11-23T00:29:52Z")
I would like to propose a discussion of this topic: [“Trump Foundation admits to violating ban on ‘self-dealing,’ new filing to IRS shows”](https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-foundation-apparently-admits-to-violating-ban-on-self-dealing-new-filing-to-irs-shows/2016/11/22/893f6508-b0a9-11e6-8616-52b15787add0_story.html?hpid=hp_hp-top-table-main_trumpfoundation-945a%3Ahomepage%2Fstory) > [@](#): > > President-elect Donald Trump’s charitable foundation has admitted to the IRS that it violated a legal prohibition against “self-dealing,” which bars nonprofit leaders from using their charity’s money to help themselves, their businesses or their families. > > The admission was contained in the Donald J. Trump Foundation’s IRS tax filings for 2015, which were recently posted online at the nonprofit-tracking site GuideStar. A GuideStar spokesman said the forms were uploaded by the Trump Foundation’s law firm, Morgan, Lewis & Bockius. > > The Washington Post could not immediately confirm if the same forms had actually been sent to the IRS. > > In one section of the form, the IRS asked if the Trump Foundation had transferred “income or assets to a disqualified person.” A disqualified person, in this context, might be Trump — the foundation’s president — or a member of his family or a Trump-owned business. > > The foundation checked “yes.” > > … > > Another line on the form asked if the Trump Foundation had engaged in any acts of self-dealing in prior years. The Trump Foundation checked “yes” again. > > Such violations can carry penalties including excise taxes, and the charity leaders can be required to repay money that the charity spent on their behalf. > > During the presidential campaign, The Post reported on several instances in which Trump appeared to use the Trump Foundation’s money to buy items for himself or to help one of his for-profit businesses… You can download the 990 here [on the right side of the screen is a button with 990 on it]: > **[Trump Foundation - GuideStar Profile](https://www.guidestar.org/profile/13-3054537)** > > Find and check a charity using Candid's GuideStar. Look up 501(c)(3) status, search 990s, create nonprofit organizations lists, and verify nonprofit information. You may have to register with Guidestar, but it’s free to get access to 990s. As a grantwriter I use this site all the time. Look up any charitable organization you want. For detailed info, you have to pay, but the 990s are free and they’re VERY revealing. Proposed discussion questions (other suggestions welcomed): [ul] [li]Discuss the immediate and potential public reaction to this news as compared with the accusations made re the Clinton Foundation that were never proved. I’m guessing the main reaction will be **yawn.** [/li] [li]Will the Republican leadership give a fig that the Trump Foundation has been caught with its fanny hanging out? Do you think ANY Republicans who ARE offended by this will break from the herd and speak out?[/li] [li]How will Donald talk/tweet his way out of this? I’m guessing he’ll disavow any knowledge of what the Trump Foundation does, claiming he’s too busy to micromanage it.[/li] [li]Will there be any legal/societal/political consequences to this at all? I’m thinking no. It will be forgotten in less than a week. (Please, someone, tell me I’m wrong.)[/li] [li]Will it tarnish his halo in the eyes of his followers? (Still hoping to hear credible defenses from Trumper/Dopers)?[/li][/ul] This is a sincere, calm invitation for others to share and discuss their thoughts on this disturbing (but not unexpected) story. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2016, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-foundation-admits-to-violating-ban-on-self-dealing-new-filing-to-irs-shows/772776/2 "2016-11-23T02:09:15Z")
I guess no one wants to be civil. I’m cool with that. ---
**Author:** ![Anny\_Middon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bc79bd/32.png) [@Anny\_Middon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anny_Middon)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2016, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-foundation-admits-to-violating-ban-on-self-dealing-new-filing-to-irs-shows/772776/3 "2016-11-23T18:34:23Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > I would like to propose a discussion of this topic: > [“Trump Foundation admits to violating ban on ‘self-dealing,’ new filing to IRS shows”](https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-foundation-apparently-admits-to-violating-ban-on-self-dealing-new-filing-to-irs-shows/2016/11/22/893f6508-b0a9-11e6-8616-52b15787add0_story.html?hpid=hp_hp-top-table-main_trumpfoundation-945a%3Ahomepage%2Fstory) > > You can download the 990 here [on the right side of the screen is a button with 990 on it]: > [Trump Foundation - GuideStar Profile](https://www.guidestar.org/profile/13-3054537) > > You may have to register with Guidestar, but it’s free to get access to 990s. As a grantwriter I use this site all the time. Look up any charitable organization you want. For detailed info, you have to pay, but the 990s are free and they’re VERY revealing. > > Proposed discussion questions (other suggestions welcomed): > > [ul] > [li]Discuss the immediate and potential public reaction to this news as compared with the accusations made re the Clinton Foundation that were never proved. I’m guessing the main reaction will be **yawn.** [/li] > [li]Will the Republican leadership give a fig that the Trump Foundation has been caught with its fanny hanging out? Do you think ANY Republicans who ARE offended by this will break from the herd and speak out?[/li] > [li]How will Donald talk/tweet his way out of this? I’m guessing he’ll disavow any knowledge of what the Trump Foundation does, claiming he’s too busy to micromanage it.[/li] > [li]Will there be any legal/societal/political consequences to this at all? I’m thinking no. It will be forgotten in less than a week. (Please, someone, tell me I’m wrong.)[/li] > [li]Will it tarnish his halo in the eyes of his followers? (Still hoping to hear credible defenses from Trumper/Dopers)?[/li][/ul] > This is a sincere, calm invitation for others to share and discuss their thoughts on this disturbing (but not unexpected) story. I was about to post about this, when it occurred to me that probably someone already had. Apparently, the main reaction is _yawn_ - even by Trump himself. All the people who got their underpants in a twist over nonexistent problems in the Clinton Foundation clearly don’t give a damn when it’s the Trump Foundation caught in actual malfeasance. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2016, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-foundation-admits-to-violating-ban-on-self-dealing-new-filing-to-irs-shows/772776/4 "2016-11-23T18:41:10Z")
I think we can stop pretending his supporters care about how their side acquires power any more-the ends justify _any_ means. Period. ---
**Author:** ![Bone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bone/32/407_2.png) [@Bone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bone)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2016, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-foundation-admits-to-violating-ban-on-self-dealing-new-filing-to-irs-shows/772776/5 "2016-11-23T18:45:53Z")
I’d like to know more details of what lays behind the check box before concluding. It could be innocuous or it could be terrible. ---
**Author:** ![DrCube](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a3d4f5/32.png) [@DrCube](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrCube)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2016, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-foundation-admits-to-violating-ban-on-self-dealing-new-filing-to-irs-shows/772776/6 "2016-11-23T19:04:04Z")
Wake me up when he shoots somebody in Times square in broad daylight. Otherwise, I can’t imagine _this_ is what will finally stick to Teflon Trump. It was already brought up during the election. Nobody cared. ---
**Author:** ![dracoi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90db22/32.png) [@dracoi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dracoi)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2016, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-foundation-admits-to-violating-ban-on-self-dealing-new-filing-to-irs-shows/772776/7 "2016-11-23T19:09:57Z")
I really don’t see this mattering. It only confirms what we already knew. He’ll pay the penalties and complain about how unfair it is when Hillary had done things five times as bad. His supporters will continue to believe false information that portrays the Clinton Foundation as being worse. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2016, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-foundation-admits-to-violating-ban-on-self-dealing-new-filing-to-irs-shows/772776/8 "2016-11-23T19:15:07Z")
If he can make it go away with money, it’s a “win”. _Anything_ except him personally going to jail is considered a “win” by Trump and the Trumpettes. ---
**Author:** ![sleestak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/919ad9/32.png) [@sleestak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sleestak)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2016, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-foundation-admits-to-violating-ban-on-self-dealing-new-filing-to-irs-shows/772776/9 "2016-11-23T20:02:35Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > I think we can stop pretending his supporters care about how their side acquires power any more-the ends justify _any_ means. Period. You know, the whole assume that the other side is X where X is some nasty thing didn’t really work for Clinton. It didn’t work because it isn’t true and it insults those you want to support your side. But keep it up and you will win an election … well never. It is sorta funny. A while ago I posted on this board that what ought to happen to any politician on either side that gets busted doing something hinkey is that they ought to get kicked out of office. This idea was met with indifference. Clinton and her little email server should have disqualified her from running for dog catcher. Why? The whole ‘there is evidence that they were extremely careless in their handling of very sensitive, highly classified information’ [thing](https://www.fbi.gov/news/pressrel/press-releases/statement-by-fbi-director-james-b-comey-on-the-investigation-of-secretary-hillary-clinton2019s-use-of-a-personal-e-mail-system). Very few who like Clinton care. Why? Because it is about winning at all costs. I am sure some Trump supporters will blow this off. They shouldn’t. But they will for the exact same reason you blew off Clinton and [her](http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2016/jul/06/hillary-clinton/fbi-findings-tear-holes-hillary-clintons-email-def/)[lies](http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2016/may/31/hillary-clinton/fact-checking-hillary-clintons-claim-her-email-pra/)about her email server. Some Trump supporters will have problems with it, those who are honest. But the political game these days isn’t about honesty. It isn’t about truth. It isn’t about anything but winning and screwing over the other side. It is rather funny watching partisans on both sides try and claim the moral high ground while their candidates slog through the slime. Slee ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2016, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-foundation-admits-to-violating-ban-on-self-dealing-new-filing-to-irs-shows/772776/10 "2016-11-23T20:25:19Z")
> [@Bone](#): > > I’d like to know more details of what lays behind the check box before concluding. It could be innocuous or it could be terrible. Yes, it seems strange for there to be a checkbox asking, “Have you committed any crimes?” ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2016, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-foundation-admits-to-violating-ban-on-self-dealing-new-filing-to-irs-shows/772776/11 "2016-11-23T23:25:04Z")
[QUOTE=sleestak] A while ago I posted on this board that what ought to happen to any politician on either side that gets busted doing something hinkey is that they ought to get kicked out of office. This idea was met with indifference. [/quote] Well, it’s a pretty vague and useless idea. We need to have more clear and consistent criteria for political misconduct than the ill-defined subjective assessment that something is somehow “hinkey”. I.e., exactly what instances of unscrupulous or unwise behavior **that do not constitute actual indictable offenses** do you think should entail getting “kicked out of office”? Please be specific and comprehensive. [QUOTE=sleestak] The whole ‘there is evidence that they were extremely careless in their handling of very sensitive, highly classified information’ [thing](https://www.fbi.gov/news/pressrel/press-releases/statement-by-fbi-director-james-b-comey-on-the-investigation-of-secretary-hillary-clinton2019s-use-of-a-personal-e-mail-system). Very few who like Clinton care. [/quote] Nonsense: many Clinton supporters care about this ill-judged and unprofessional abuse of proper protocol. But most Clinton supporters recognized that since it was thoroughly investigated and found not to constitute criminal activity, it did not officially disqualify her candidacy in any way. Nor did it somehow make her political abilities and principles suddenly inferior to her opponent’s. There’s a substantial difference between **“not caring”** and **“not considering a non-criminal mistake serious enough to make Donald Trump the better choice”**. You can’t base an actual workable code of campaign conduct upon a concept so vague and ill-defined as “something hinkey”. [QUOTE=sleestak] Some Trump supporters will have problems with it, those who are honest. But the political game these days isn’t about honesty. It isn’t about truth. It isn’t about anything but winning and screwing over the other side. It is rather funny watching partisans on both sides try and claim the moral high ground while their candidates slog through the slime. [/QUOTE] :rolleyes: More shallow and superficial false equivalence. What we’re seeing is **not** a case of “both sides do it”, at least not to anything like the same extent. Trump is far less qualified in every respect than Clinton, far more entangled in shady scams and conflicts of interest than Clinton, far more blatantly and unscrupulously untruthful and dishonest than Clinton. None of that means that I “don’t care” about Clinton’s misdeeds and mistakes, or that I would support her at all costs no matter what she did. But being honest about your preferred candidate’s problems doesn’t mean that you have to pretend that there’s no difference between the two sides. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2016, 5:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-foundation-admits-to-violating-ban-on-self-dealing-new-filing-to-irs-shows/772776/12 "2016-11-24T05:41:22Z")
I thought it was spelled “hinky”…