An investigation into the Donald J. Trump Foundation found that nearly all of its money comes from donors other than the Republican presidential candidate, according to the Washington Post.
A probe into 17 years of tax filings and interviews with more than 200 people or groups listed as donors or beneficiaries has shown that Trump’s charity raises and spends money in unprecedented ways for a family foundation, according to experts cited in the investigative report.
For one, NBCUniversal gave $500,000 to the foundation in 2012. “Its gift more than covered the ‘personal’ donations that Trump offered at dramatic moments on ‘The Celebrity Apprentice’ — then paid for out of the Trump Foundation,” wrote the Post’s David A. Fahrenthold.
The investigation showed that Trump has a history of turning other people’s gifts into his own charity. His last personal donation, according to tax records, was made in 2008.
“I question whether it’s ethical,” said Rosemary E. Fei, an attorney in San Francisco who has advised hundreds of small foundations. “It’s certainly misleading. But I think it’s legal, because you would think that the other foundation that’s . . . being taken advantage of would look out for their own interests… That’s their decision to let him do that.”
Read the full story at the Washington Post.