Vet Group Turns Down Trump-Due To Public Political 'Gift'

[Kathianne]

This does not appear to be an arm of the Democrats:

http://www.weeklystandard.com/report-vets-charity-turns-down-trump-cash/article/2000975/?utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=20160208_TWS-blog-vets-charity-trump-cash-4_facebook.com&utm_content=TWS


Report: Vets Charity Turns Down Trump Cash



11:21 AM, FEB 08, 2016 | By JIM SWIFT (http://www.weeklystandard.com/author/jim-swift)











<cnt style="box-sizing: content-box; display: block; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: franklin-gothic-urw, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 34px;">The Daily Beast is reporting (http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/02/06/nh-vets-pass-on-being-trump-s-paid-props.html) that a small New Hampshire-based veterans charity has turned down a six figure check from Donald Trump. Liberty House turned Trump's money away because they objected to it being given to them in a public setting: a campaign rally for Trump.


</cnt><cnt style="box-sizing: content-box; display: block; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: franklin-gothic-urw, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 34px;">The Beast's Tim Mak has more (http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/02/06/nh-vets-pass-on-being-trump-s-paid-props.html):


</cnt><cnt style="box-sizing: content-box; display: block; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: franklin-gothic-urw, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 34px;">On Friday, Liberty House executive director Keith Howard received a call from a Trump campaign staffer, who conveyed that Trump would like to publicly present them with a six-figure check at a Londonderry rally (https://www.eventbrite.com/e/donald-j-trump-town-hall-londonderry-tickets-21361027408)on (https://www.eventbrite.com/e/donald-j-trump-town-hall-londonderry-tickets-21361027408)Monday, right before the Granite State primary. (http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/02/05/how-trump-got-trumped-by-the-snow.html)


It's an enormous amount of money for a small charity. But Howard said he wouldn't do it—risking the entire, substantial donation on a point of principle.


Howard, a 57-year-old Army vet, objected to the use of veterans (http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/01/28/donald-trump-wanted-vets-kicked-off-fifth-avenue.html) for political purposes. He doesn't believe that his charity—which clothes the homeless, feeds the needy, and provides housing to 10 formerly homeless vets—should be presented with money by a political candidate at a political rally.


"This is not directed at the Trump campaign," Howard said. "This is about any campaign."


Plus, Howard believed appearing at a political rally could jeopardize his group's nonprofit status—something a call to an expert in the state attorney general's office confirmed. And he found it strange that the call was coming from a Trump campaign staffer, rather than someone related to the foundation that raised money for veterans.
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<cnt style="box-sizing: content-box; display: block; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: franklin-gothic-urw, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 34px;">The money generated from Trump's Iowa rally, as the Federalist reported (http://thefederalist.com/2016/01/28/trumps-new-pro-veterans-website-directs-all-donations-to-trumps-personal-foundation/), went to Trump's personal foundation first instead of going directly to the charities themselves. The rally was set up by Trump as an alternative to the Iowa Fox News debate he skipped out on.


</cnt><cnt style="box-sizing: content-box; display: block; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: franklin-gothic-urw, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: 34px;">Read the whole story at the Daily Beast (http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/02/06/nh-vets-pass-on-being-trump-s-paid-props.html).
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[NightTrain]

It sounds like this Howard guy is a good man trying to do good things :

http://manchesterinklink.com/how-nhs-liberty-house-will-spend-its-cut-of-donald-trumps-6m-raised-for-vets/

I think turning down a few hundred thousand is a mistake... that kind of money in his hands can do a lot of good. But he's the boss.

[Kathianne]

It sounds like this Howard guy is a good man trying to do good things :

http://manchesterinklink.com/how-nhs-liberty-house-will-spend-its-cut-of-donald-trumps-6m-raised-for-vets/

I think turning down a few hundred thousand is a mistake... that kind of money in his hands can do a lot of good. But he's the boss.
The mistake would be if they lost their charitable tax status.

[NightTrain]

The mistake would be if they lost their charitable tax status.


Oh, I'm sure there is a safe way to do that. Anyone standing in the way of a Veteran's charity getting much needed money would quickly be painted as heartless ghouls. Rightfully so.

[Perianne]

The Weekly Standard report appears to be incorrect.


UPDATE: This report by the Weekly Standard is incorrect.
Liberty House accepted the Trump donation but could not receive the donation at a rally for tax reasons.

http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2016/02/veterans-charity-turns-down-trump-donation-because-of-politics/#st_refDomain=t.co&st_refQuery=/IcY5VfrDsJ

[revelarts]

Just makes you wonder how many other "gifts" he's given out to folks hoping that it will help him in the race.
there have been several surprising endorsements.

[Kathianne]

Hmm, other than saying they accepted then couldn't there's no 'there' there. Other than that 'update' with no link or reference, the story was the same.

[Perianne]

Just makes you wonder how many other "gifts" he's given out to folks hoping that it will help him in the race.
there have been several surprising endorsements.

Not everyone who supports Trump needs to have been bought. Maybe they like his rhetoric.

[Kathianne]

Just makes you wonder how many other "gifts" he's given out to folks hoping that it will help him in the race.
there have been several surprising endorsements.

I don't know if he's been doing the same, but he speaks with 'authority' about the issues of elections, he admits to having bought favors over many, many years. Now he's all for only those rich enough to be 'self-funding' to run. LOL! Yeah, more than hypocrisy. The idea isn't 'revolutionary' but favoring only a handful of those who've made billions and add in that of those that would decide to 'set aside' their professional lives to become president.

It's not campaign reform but a push towards even more oligarchy. An extension of the elites know what's best for the masses, fitting perhaps for those in favor of such.

[revelarts]

Not everyone who supports Trump needs to have been bought. Maybe they like his rhetoric.
I can't disagree with that at all.
I'm sure many are completely sincere.
And I have no way of proving anyone has taken any "gifts".
But i do wonder.


I don't know if he's been doing the same, but he speaks with 'authority' about the issues of elections, he admits to having bought favors over many, many years. Now he's all for only those rich enough to be 'self-funding' to run. LOL! Yeah, more than hypocrisy. The idea isn't 'revolutionary' but favoring only a handful of those who've made billions and add in that of those that would decide to 'set aside' their professional lives to become president.

It's not campaign reform but a push towards even more oligarchy. An extension of the elites know what's best for the masses, fitting perhaps for those in favor of such.

yep

[sundaydriver]

Howard never said that he will not accept the money, only that he didn't want to be used as a political pawn. And Trump is still using it for political gain.

Still, Liberty House will be accepting the promised cash -- in a decidedly less flashy, public way.
Trump's campaign eventually decided instead to present the check to New Hampshire State Rep. Al Baldasaro, a Trump supporter and a military vet, at Trump's rally Monday afternoon. At a later time, Baldasaro will then pass on the funds to Howard and Liberty House on behalf of the Trump Foundation


http://www.cbsnews.com/news/donald-trump-campaign-promised-money-to-veterans-group-for-campaign-appearance/

[Tyr-Ziu Saxnot]

The same people screaming about Trump giving that sum to a charity never say a damn word about the ffing dem party taking billions of our tax dollars and buying black votes with it(social programs, unearned income credit , etc.)for well over 40+ years!
Besides that, those vets in dire situations can use that money regardless of who gave it or why they gave it.

Dems come out evey election cycle suddenly pretending to support our vets and our military- the
rest of the time they demand military cuts and don't give a damn about our veterans.

FFing hypocrites make me sick --:puke3:--TYR

[Kathianne]

If the Democrats are hypocrites regarding Vets, so has been Trump. There's no record of the earlier attempt by Trump to extort CNN to give $5m, made up by the Trump Foundation either. He's using them as props:

http://www.forbes.com/sites/emilycanal/2015/12/03/donald-trump-veterans/#1917a83c6c9e



<time itemprop="datePublished" content="2015-12-03T13:23:00-05:00" class="ng-binding" style="color: rgb(136, 136, 136); font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-stretch: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; text-transform: uppercase;">DEC 3, 2015 @ 01:23 PM</time> 23,573 VIEWSWhen It Comes To Veterans, Donald Trump's Rhetoric Is Much More Generous Than His Giving Record

Although he’s not going to get it (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/cnn-president-donald-trump_56604cbfe4b08e945fee2a81?ncid=tweetlnkushpmg 00000067), Donald Trump (http://www.forbes.com/profile/donald-trump/) demanded $5 million from CNN (http://www.thedailybeast.com/cheats/2015/12/01/trump-may-nix-debate-unless-cnn-donates.html) this week to appear in the network’s next debate. The billionaire added that he would donate the money to veterans and the Wounded Warriors Foundation. That would be $4.94 million more than his charitable foundation has given veterans in recent years, Forbes found.



The Donald J. Trump Foundation has donated $5.5 million to 298 charities between 2009 and 2013 (the most recent year available), according to the non-profit’s 990 tax forms from those years. Of that, only $57,000 has been donated to seven organizations that directly benefit military veterans or their families, Forbes found. Wounded Warriors was not among the organizations Trump’s foundation gave to in that time period.



Forbes also found that Trump, who we estimate is worth $4.5 billion (http://www.forbes.com/sites/randalllane/2015/09/29/inside-the-epic-fantasy-thats-driven-donald-trump-for-33-years/), has not made personal contributions to his foundation during the same time period. We reached out to his spokespeople for comment, but did not hear back before publishing.