Right now on CNN - Trump Foundation to CEASE solicitations per NY AC

[csziggy]

No link, live now on CNN, Jim Acosta reporting.

NY AG orders Trump Foundation to cease solicitations. Cease & desist order!

Edited to add:

State Attorney General Orders Trump Foundation to Cease Raising Money in New York

By STEVE EDEROCT. 3, 2016

The office of New York Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman has issued a “notice of violation” to Donald J. Trump’s foundation, ordering it to immediately stop soliciting donations in New York.

The letter, which was sent on Friday and released on Monday morning by Mr. Schneiderman’s office, said that its charities bureau had determined that the Donald J. Trump Foundation had been fund-raising in New York this year when it was not registered to do so under state law.

“The Trump Foundation must immediately cease soliciting contributions or engaging in any other fund-raising activities in New York,” wrote James Sheehan, the chief of the charities bureau.

Mr. Trump’s foundation has come under increasing scrutiny amid questions about his fulfillment of large charitable pledges and his lack of financial support in recent years.

More: http://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/04/us/politics/trump-foundation-money.html

[Cracklin Charlie]

1. Uh oh.

[csziggy]

2. Personally my reaction is...

[Cracklin Charlie]

5. I don't know...

All this "winning" Assface is doing, has my head in a spin.

I can hardly keep up.

(insert sarcasm thingy)

[molova]

3. Imagine if the Clinton Foundation had been found to violate the law

The right-wing media would force the mainstream media to cover this 24/7. Heck, 25/8.

[brooklynite]

4. Details here...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1014&pid=1587359

[BobbyDrake]

6. Did Trump not consider that his whole life would be scrutinized?

He probably just thought, "I'll run for President, and get a bunch of free advertising. What could go wrong?"

He'll be lucky to not be in jail after this is over.

[csziggy]

9. It's another point showing how sloppy Trump's business practices are

The other incidents where he spent Trump Foundation money on items he personally desired were explained the other day as sloppy accounting practices - all the bills came back to one place and the ones to be written to "charities" all came out of the Trump Foundation with no scrutiny as to what the checks were for and whether they were for allowable expenses.

It's not rocket surgery! Of course, having confusing accounting practices makes it very hard for forensic accountants to figure out what was actually going on - and that could easily be the reason Trump's business practices are so messed up!

[SaschaHM]

7. Trump is going to lose it!

5-6 hours until the twitter meltdown?

[Dump The Rump]

8. T RUMP fails to get his act together. Of course one who has his head between his cheeks can do that.

Me thinks anyone who can lose a billion dollars running a casino is a really bad gamble for a country that prints money. T RUMP could lose the entire US Mint by making change for his nickels to benefit his own self.

[Iliyah]

10. How in the hell NY Financial Department (don't know what its called)

Allowed him to do business without the certification?

[csziggy]

11. Good question!

Here is the agency that is supposed to keep track of this stuff: https://www.charitiesnys.com/home.html

It's interesting - the foundation filed paperwork with the office for many years (https://www.charitiesnys.com/RegistrySearch/show_details.jsp?id={412967CE-87D6-4FAF-A0E2-58CF382F8F53}). Looking at the 2014 form only EPTL was selected:

EPTL
EPTL registrants are registered under the New York Estates, Powers and Trusts Law, which governs charitable activity in New York State.
Examples of EPTL registrants include but are not limited to New York-based charitable organizations, out-of-state charities that conduct business or maintain assets in New York, and New York trusts and estates that have a present charitable interest.
https://www.charitiesnys.com/RegistrySearch/glossary.jsp?anchor=EPTL#EPTL

There is an option to select 7A or "dual - both 7A and EPTL.

7A
7A Article 7-A registrants are registered under Article 7-A of the New York Executive Law, which governs the solicitation of contributions (including grants) from New York State sources (including without limitation residents, foundations, corporations and government agencies).

Examples of Article 7-A registrants include but are not limited to fund raising professionals (professional fund raisers, fund raising counsel and professional solicitors) and New York-based or out-of-state charitable organizations, social welfare organizations, fraternal organizations, unions, business leagues, social clubs or other nonprofits that solicit contributions from New York State sources beyond their own membership.https://www.charitiesnys.com/RegistrySearch/glossary.jsp#glossarypage

If they had selected dual there would be no problem. It seems the Trump Foundation was intended to be a family foundation - one that a family contributes to and then distributes money to other charities. In one of the discussions about the Clinton Foundation it was mentioned that the Clintons have a family foundation that works in just that way. No money other than family money goes into the Clinton family foundation from what was said.

Money that the Clintons raised from other sources went into the Clinton Foundation. With all the scrutiny given to it, if their public foundation did not have the proper certifications that would have come out by now. Every recent filing by the Clinton Foundation is available on their website and can be and probably has been examined.

But the Trumps did not run the Trump Foundation as solely a family foundation especially over the last ten or fifteen years despite the designation on their filings. Trump has contributed little or no money to the foundation, he solicited funds from the public without getting the proper certification, and he used the money as his own personal slush fund.