Donald Trump has boasted about his philanthropy for decades, but there’s no evidence he’s given nearly as much as he claims.
In a break from decades of precedent, Trump has refused to release the documents that would settle the question definitively — his tax returns. And the Washington Post’s exhaustive report into Trump’s philanthropic past characterized Trump’s boasts as “a facade.”
“Instead, throughout his life in the spotlight, whether as a businessman, television star or presidential candidate, The Post found that Trump had sought credit for charity he had not given — or had claimed other people’s giving as his own,” David Fahrenthold reported late last month.
During an appearance on CNBC the morning before Election Day, Trump campaign manager Kellyanne Conway was grilled on Trump’s thin charitable record.
Conway, unsurprisingly, denied any and all reports that her boss isn’t as generous as he says. But without any real evidence to support her position, Conway resorted to anecdotes — “I’ve seen him write checks, I’ve been there when he’s writing checks to people” — and made a case that Trump’s most significant charitable contribution was his campaign itself.
“The idea that somebody who has made such a tremendous sacrifice to run for President — basically a huge sacrifice, didn’t need the money, didn’t need the fame, didn’t need the power, didn’t need the status — and you’ve got a lot of deals that didn’t get done, I’m sure, in the Trump Corporation because the guy at the top is running for President,” she said. “Those are tremendous sacrifices. He’s been incredibly generous.”
It’s unclear how much of a “sacrifice” Trump’s presidential will ultimately be for his family business, however. Though the Trump brand’s favorability has taken a hit, the campaign has introduced Trump’s children and wife to a national audience, and Trump may try to parlay his devoted following into a new TV network.
The Trump campaign is many things. But despite what Conway would have you believe, a charitable contribution is not one of them.