What exactly was/is Trump University?

[guacamole]

I decided to start a new thread on this because I was ignorant about the case, the institution, and the personalities involved other than the Donald. In addition, the other thread had degenerated into name calling. I decided to do a (very) little research and post some links. I did not try to balance my approach to include "conservative" and "liberal" sources equally because I don't believe that either one is necessarily any better than the other. Here are the links I found instructive:

From The New Yorker,
"Trump University, It's Worse Than You Think"

Interesting quotes:

...There, Trump University’s instructors “engaged in a methodical, Systematic Series of misrepresentations” designed to convince students to sign up for a three-day seminar, where they would learn Trump’s personal techniques and strategies for investing, at a cost of about fifteen hundred dollars.

and further on:

One of Schnackenberg’s contributions, in his testimony, was to illustrate how these tactics worked with individuals. Recounting his experience with one couple, which included a man who was on disability, he said, “After the hard-sell sales presentation, they were considering purchasing the $35,000 Elite program. I did not feel it was an appropriate program for them because of their precarious financial condition.” Far from being commended by his bosses for his honesty, Schnackenberg said that he was reprimanded. Another salesperson then “talked them into buying the $35,000 program after I refused to sell this program to them,” he testified. “I was disgusted by this conduct and decided to resign.”

If this is accurate, that's some "Church of Scientology" level deceit there.

If you're not interested in reading the New Yorker article, then know that the writer provided the following links:

First,the affidavit of Schnackenberg:

He describes the nature of the program and the results as he saw them.

To my knowledge, not a single consumer who paid for a Trump University seminar programs [sic] went on to successfully invest in real estate based on the techniques that were taught.

and, to emphasize the "Scientology-esq" sleaziness of it all:

Based upon my experience at Trump University, the whole goal of the free seminar was to persuade consumers to sign up for the $1,500 seminar. Also based upon my experience at Trump University, the whole purpose of the $1,500 seminar was to get people to sign up for the $35,000 Elite seminars. and the whole purpose of the $35,000 Elite seminars was to get people to buy additional books, seminars and products.

The New Yorker article also links to the Politico article from last March that tried to first make political hay from the scandal. Of interest to anyone interested in that article was a link for "the book" of instructions for employees of Trump University.

Politico article:
Tales from the Trump University Legal Vault

For those of you who are gluttons for punishment, or who just love the handsome prose of Corporate 'Merica!(tm) consider browsing through the Book:

Trump University 2010 Playbook

My favorite quote is posted here only for the edification of the young'uns who might come across this during their insomniac ramblings over internet. I want to assure you that this is good policy, regardless of the source. Remember facial tattoos are the quick path to unemployment:

Trump U Team Members should never have visible tattoos or facial piercings at any Trump U events.

One presumes that if the "Trump U Team Members" had "cash only" tattooed on their knuckles, then the con would be easier to spot.

If the soporific stylings of the legal profession are more your speed, consider the legal complaint from New York's Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, (via the Wall Street Journal website):

The people of the State of New York vs. The Trump Entrepreneur Initiative LLC, et al.

The condensed points as I see them, seemingly petty or otherwise, are as follows:

1. "...their use of the word "university" violated New York Law. (see points 6 and 7)
2. "Respondents repeatedly claimed that prospective students would be taught by successful real estate "experts" who were "handpicked" by Donald Trump. In fact, respondents lacked substantiation for the claims that the instructors and mentors were successful real estate entrepreneurs. Not a single one was "handpicked" by Donald Trump.
3. "Relying on these representations, individuals spent thousands of dollars of their savings or took on thousands of dollars in debt--while Trump University brought in over $40 million in Revenue.'
4. "Trump Personally [approved] each of the misleading advertisements it published..."
5. "Through their deceptive and unlawful practices, respondents intentionally misled over 5000 individuals nationwide... into paying as much as $35,000 each..."
6. "By ignoring NYSED [New York State Education Department] and continuing to use the "Trump University" name... respondents also repeatedly deceived students into thinking that they were attending a legally chartered "university."
7. "Some instructors claimed that a Trump degree "is a bit of a college degree" and that Trump University offered "graduate programs, post graduate programs, [and] doctorate programs."

There's considerably more immoral behavior in this document than I can conveniently quote here:

Paragraphs 86-90 explain how students paid $1,500 for what is essentially a three-day sales pitch.

Paragraphs 94-100 explain how the mentorship programs, costing as much as $35,000 dollars, never materialized.

Paragraphs 104-107 explain how Trump University counseled "students" to lie to lenders in order to raise their credit limits.

etc. etc. etc. ad nauseum.

Lastly, here is the Wikipedia Entry:

Trump University

And, because I am a buzzard, the Conservapedia Entry:

Trump University

Which offers this reminder, like a faint whiff of brimstone in the air, of the extensive web of intrigue:

The office of Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi announced in September 2013 that it was considering joining a New York lawsuit against Trump University.[3] Four days later, the Donald J. Trump Foundation donated $25,000 to "And Justice for All," a 527 group supporting Bondi's re-election campaign. Following this, Bondi declined to join New York in the lawsuit. According to a Bondi spokesman, Bondi had personally solicited the donation from Trump several weeks before her office announced it was considering joining the lawsuit.[4] In September 2016 it was reported that the donation violated laws against political contributions from nonprofit organizations, and that Donald Trump had reimbursed the foundation from his own money and paid the IRS a $2,500 excise tax as a penalty.[5] Trump denied that the donation was connected to the Trump University lawsuit, saying that it was for Bondi's performance as attorney general.[6] In November 2016, Trump appointed Bondi to his transition team.

At any rate, if you made it this far, I feel like I should offer you some encouraging or instructive scripture.

"No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth."

fwiw,
guaca.

[The Thinker]

Great post. I think it's pretty objectively true that Trump "University" was a total scam. Why would a man already rich need to stoop to such low behavior? Either he has no sense of ethics at all, or he's not really as rich as he claims, or both.

[guacamole]

Great post. I think it's pretty objectively true that Trump "University" was a total scam. Why would a man already rich need to stoop to such low behavior? Either he has no sense of ethics at all, or he's not really as rich as he claims, or both.

And it might be both. Or it might be that he loves money so much that he wants to acquire it by any means necessary. Shameful. In any case, he is consistently demonstrating, even a paragon of, the profit-first ethic that riddles so much of the morally vacant "masters-of-the-universe" types to whom Republicans and Neo-liberal democrats want to hand the reigns of power.

To think that we Christians once argued that character matters, thought that a person who couldn't be trusted in "small" things also couldn't be trusted to occupy the seat of power. How times have changed.

[Jaecp]

And it might be both. Or it might be that he loves money so much that he wants to acquire it by any means necessary. Shameful. In any case, he is consistently demonstrating, even a paragon of, the profit-first ethic that riddles so much of the morally vacant "masters-of-the-universe" types to whom Republicans and Neo-liberal democrats want to hand the reigns of power.

To think that we Christians once argued that character matters, thought that a person who couldn't be trusted in "small" things also couldn't be trusted to occupy the seat of power. How times have changed.

Partisan bubbles are hard to break :( And unfortunately as someone who isn't religious, nor conservative, me saying anything about that is going to be ignored because of said partisan bubble.

Who knows though, we might get lucky and have a couple dozen faithless electors :P

[Leonhard]

Who knows though, we might get lucky and have a couple dozen faithless electors :P

While people here now I don't hold President-Elect Trump in very high regard, this scenario would be even worse.

[Jaecp]

While people here now I don't hold President-Elect Trump in very high regard, this scenario would be even worse.

Maybe, but that's its own thread ;) Hamilton, among other Framers, saw the EC as a bulwark against Demagogues which would make faithless electors against Trump --clearly a demagogue-- 100% in line with the original goals of the EC.

But, again, thats it's own thread.