Donald Trump, Who Is Worth An Estimated $3.1 Billion, Says Presidency Has Cost Him As Much As $5 Billion
According to Donald Trump, his presidency has cost him all the money he has in the world — and then some.
On Tuesday, the president delivered a speech at a plant near Pittsburgh and delved into remarks about his own personal wealth. As NBC News reported, Trump appeared to defend himself against reports that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and other members of his delegation booked multiple nights at Trump’s hotel, which critics saw as a conflict of interest.
As Trump said, the presidency is actually “costing me a fortune.”
“Somebody said, ‘Oh, he might have rented a room to a man from Saudi Arabia for $500,'” Trump said. “What about the $5 billion that I’ll lose?”
Trump went on to say that it was costing him between $3 billion and $5 billion to be president, but that he “couldn’t care less.”
The report went on to note that it was impossible to fact check Donald Trump’s claim, as he has long refused to release his tax returns and has a long history of exaggerating his own wealth with misleading or false statements. In its most recent assessment of Trump’s net worth, Forbes pegged him as having roughly $3.1 billion in assets, with most of it coming from his New York City real estate. Trump does have real estate elsewhere, including his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, and he also owns a series of golf courses around the globe.
There could be some truth to Trump’s statement that the presidency is costing him a lot of money. The value of several of his properties has fallen since he took office, which some experts believe is due to the brand Trump has spent decades building taking a hit from his string of controversial decisions and statements as president.
Trump sues California over law requiring candidates to reveal tax returns https://t.co/WJ4XDQTVau
— TIME (@TIME) August 7, 2019
As Forbes noted in a separate report, his New York City properties have dropped in value and some of the high-value renters are not likely to re-up on their leases once they are up.
“The value of Trump National Doral Miami, the commander-in-chief’s highest-grossing golf property, dropped an estimated $26 million over the last year,” the report added. “Much of that decline is due to political fallout. The golf resort, which had previously drawn much of its clientele from the left-leaning Northeast, lost 100,000 booked room nights after Trump won the election, according to a source who knows the business.”
Donald Trump has previously pegged his own net worth at as much as $10 million, though Forbes has consistently rated him much lower.
