Trump Says He's Prepared To Spend $1 Billion On Campaign

[Purveyor]

Source: CNN

By Eugene Scott, CNN
Updated 9:02 PM ET, Sat August 15, 2015

Des Moines, Iowa (CNN)Donald Trump said Saturday that he's prepared to spend $1 billion on his campaign if necessary.

"It's irrelevant," he said when asked by CNN's Jeremy Diamond outside the Iowa State Fair on how much he has spent so far on his campaign. "I make $400 million a year, so what difference does it make? What I want to do is make the country great."

Pressed again later in the afternoon if he would spend up to $1 billion, Trump was more definitive: "If necessary, I will spend it, yes."

Trump said he does not have to worry about pleasing lobbyists like other candidates because his race is self-funded. The businessman said he recently turned down $5 million from a lobbyist wanting to contribute to his campaign.

The bombastic billionaire, who has claimed he's worth $10 billion, has given to candidates in the past -- including Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton -- so, according to him, they will do his bidding.

Read more: http://www.cnn.com/2015/08/15/politics/donald-trump-billions-campaign-spending/

[enough]

1. Makes perfect sense. He can buy himself the office, then do his own bidding.

A very pure form of government.

[Purveyor]

2. I got caught up in watching him last night at his forum and I got to say, the guy is entertaining

and dangerous at the same time.

Like a standup comic saying things that too many americans are enjoying hearing...

Different breed of candidate we have here and I'm not sure where this is going.

[trillion]

36. He's actually parroting what the repub candidates have been saying all along but stopped because

their ratings started to suffer. Remember when they all abandoned Michelle Bachman? That racism wasn't working for them when it came to election time. I mean sure their base is full of backwards racists, but the majority of our population now lives in Cities and are racially diverse.

[yeoman6987]

8. That is about what it costs to become president

So he is not doing anything different then all the other candidates except using his own money. The other nominee will spend a billion too.

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

3. Can the Kochs and Sheldon Adelson match that?

I hate that it's come to this in American politics, buying the presidency for a billion dollars. At least Trump is honest about what he wants to do, although I feel that this can't be what the founding fathers envisioned.

[PoliticAverse]

4. I find it hard to believe he'd actually spend that much of his own money. n/t

[onehandle]

5. He's worth a total of 3 or 400 million. Period.

His name is associated with 'billions' of dollars of properties and enterprises. But he basically leases his name to the real owners.

That being said...

Trump! Trump! Trump! Trump! Trump!

Go All The Way To The RNCNRAfest!

[Recursion]

38. Forbes puts him at $4 billion counting liquidity costs

He's got about $10 billion in equity, but the formula they used based on how hard it would be to sell cuts that down to $4 billion. And he has surprisingly little debt.

[skamaria]

39. Not surprising he has very little debt.

All the contractors, sub contractors and others he stiffed with all four of his bankruptcies are carrying the debt.

[OhWiseOne]

6. Trump will put Hillary into the White House

And simultaneously make this the most entertaining election ever.

[bearssoapbox]

7. Why not spend a billion dollars.

Then after he quits or loses he can just file for bankruptcy.

When all is said and done he will be a footnote, albeit a sorry, humorous and embarrassing one, in our political history.

[doc03]

9. I am not so sure that he will lose n/t

[hamsterjill]

33. My thinking as well as to bankruptcy.

Four times at this point, right? What's one more? As he said, he "used the courts".

[bearssoapbox]

40. He's another shining example reTHUGliCON responsibility.

They spend like crazy but don't want to pay the bills.

He'll be in until someone tells him that America can't declare bankruptcy.

[IronLionZion]

10. Do it Donald! Spend it all!

It's necessary!

[Gothmog]

11. And yet he only has $300 million of liquid assets

[Xipe Totec]

12. Hold the world ransom for... One Million Dollars!

[Reter]

15. Who's Trump's brother?

Did you think we were talking about Jeb?

[Geronimoe]

14. Why not?

He can spend the money on credit and then claim bankruptcy. He has done it already numerous times.

[Guy Whitey Corngood]

16. Oh bullshit! He ain't got that kind of dough. As his guy said on that documentary.

When he tells you he's got or he's spending x or y amount. Divide that by 4 then divide that by 2. Then you're closer to the actual amount.

[mrdmk]

17. Well that is about the going rate for this election cycle

How Much Does It Cost to Run for President?
By Michael D. Shear March 26, 2011 7:00 am

How much does it cost to run for president?

The answer to that question is remarkably complicated. It depends in large part on how much a candidate is able to raise. And it can vary wildly, from the candidate who operates on a shoestring budget to the gold-plated, multistate operations of the most serious contenders.

As the 2012 campaign gets under way, there have been a lot of numbers thrown around. Some analysts believe that President Obama, who raised and spent about $750 million in the 2008 campaign, will come close to $1 billion this time around — a figure that senior White House officials dispute.

(One argument those officials make is that Mr. Obama’s record-breaking fund-raising took place during a historically long and bruising primary campaign against Hillary Rodham Clinton that stretched practically to the Democratic convention. No one predicts that kind of competition — if any — for Mr. Obama in a primary next year.)

link from older article: http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/03/26/how-much-does-it-cost-to-run-for-president/

Seems if Trump did his homework. Now if (another if) he really has that kind money, don't spend it all in one place!

[davidpdx]

18. A majority of the replies in this thread seem to take the opinion that Trump won't spend the money

or can't find the money. I think anyone that underestimates Trump does so at their own peril. While I agree the guy is a clown, I think he could be very dangerous if he wins a primary or two in the first month. I personally hope he'll fizzle out and seek some other kind of attention (psychiatric). As much as I dislike him, he is shrewd and will do what he has to do to win.

[xfundy]

19. trump's nuts.

But not as nuts as the rest of the repigs. I'm not being facetious.

[6chars]

20. It would be an investment

As President, he could conceivably make himself tens of billions of dollars. Berulusconi?

[lumpy]

21. A damn shame Trump can't convert some of that ill gotten loot into buying

some intelligence.

[Geronimoe]

22. Not nearly enough

In the case of The Donald, he'll need to spend $10 billion to have even a slight chance of winning. Although he is disgusting, he is better than the other Republicans running. Sure is amazing but, they are all really terrible.

[RKP5637]

28. Sad to say, but Trump is the best of the republican herd. Some of the others are

literally crazy and/or totally incompetent.

[ericson00]

23. good, because I think the Clintons can raise a lot more. This also shows Trump does not have

anywhere close to 10 billion dollars, or he'd probably be willing to spend a tad more. It also means if he runs past a billion, he'll either have to ask the Kochs (who won't give it to him in the GE), or he'll run out.

[bucolic_frolic]

24. Trump is Detergent

of how lobbying and money have destroyed politics. He's lambasting
his own party with issues as he sees them and doing damage to their
ideology in the process.

This is a good cleansing.

[no_hypocrisy]

25. Trump ready to spend $1 billion on his campaign? He doesn't pay his

contractors.

[Sunlei]

26. About what Romney spent .IMO, Trump is much more popular with little repubs, then Mitt ever was

Trump has showbiz, Pizazz.

[RKP5637]

27. Democracy USA Style, buy your own Presidency! This, is where the US is today.

Disgusting!

[allan01]

29. and who is going to dig ditches , etc , and other jobs that we whtes dont want to do ?

[fredamae]

30. Good for him-Invest it All

I can't hear money speak. Can you? When others do listen to the whispers of cash-then they are giving "them" a Solid Return on their investments.
We Solidly have the Power to get Money Out of Politics when Money in Politics no Longer Works For "them", imo.

[El Shaman]

31. He can spend all

his billions and then file for 'bankruptcy' !!

[Bernardo de La Paz]

32. Make him spend it all ! Flush it all ! nt

[apnu]

34. There it is folks. I've been saying this all along.

Trump can buy his ballot slot and there is nothing anyone can do about it.

Even if we go with Forbes estimation of Trump's wealth, at 3.2 billion dollars, if he blows a billion on a Presidential run, nothing changes for him. He won't be affected, financially, in any way.

He is the GOP's worst nightmare. He repulses every non-white, non-male, non-conservative voting block. Having him around, dooms the GOP to the party of old white men. There isn't one thing the GOP can do about it. If they spurn him, he'll run 3rd party. The GOP is in a classic no-win scenario.

[trillion]

35. Spend it all Trump, Spend it all!

No amount of spending is going to changes anyone's mind about him. You either want a rude crude sexist racists for president or you don't. The dems will rally for the dems when it comes down to it. The guy is wasting his money, let's hope he wastes it all.

I'm going to bet the candidate touting universal health care wins.

[Nailzberg]

37. All Trump really needs is $1 million.

Every time this clown opens his mouth he gets on every news show. He can just keep shooting his mouth off and never have to make an ad buy.

[Purveyor]

41. He knows exactly what he is doing. I still can't tell if he

Really wants the WH though...

[Obama Legacy]

42. He Absolutely Does NOT

have that kinda money laying around. Not $1B and not even the $300M someone else mentioned above. he has a high net worth but usable cash reserves are not that much. dude loves to talk himself up.