Bunkered Trump will shoot for media stardom

The US President could spawn a lucrative TV empire — when he finally leaves the White House.

Donald Trump in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington over the weekend. Picture: AFP

David Milne was downbeat after Donald Trump’s election defeat. The resident of Menie, near Aberdeen, worries that the US President might be teeing off more often on the golf course that backs onto his home.

“We may see more of him, but hopefully it won’t be here,” said Milne, who has flown a Mexican flag above his house overlooking the Trump International links.

However, few think the billionaire businessman will retire to the golf course when he leaves the White House. Many believe this could be the start of a new, lucrative chapter in Trump’s business career as he looks to fight back against the “fake news media” with his army of fans.

The easy option is for Trump, 74, to return to the family business, where he crafted his image as a canny dealmaker despite offering little financial evidence to support those claims. After taking office, Trump put his business interests into a trust managed by his sons Donald Jr and Eric. Presidents usually put them in a blind trust to avoid conflicts of interest.

The Trump Organisation’s largest assets include the Manhattan skyscrapers Trump Tower and 40 Wall Street, luxurious hotels in Miami and Hawaii and 19 golf courses around the world.

On these shores, he owns the Turnberry and MacLeod House & Lodge hotels in Scotland. Both have golf courses attached. The latter — named after the President’s mother, Mary Anne MacLeod — is on the Menie estate.

Donald Trump will leave the White House after the January 20 inauguration. Picture: AFP

Very little is known about the Trump Organisation’s financial performance. Private companies in the US do not have to disclose financial accounts, but a New York Times investigation in September claimed that Trump had paid no income taxes in 10 of the previous 15 years, largely because his businesses reported losing more money than they made. The report said that since 2000, his golf courses had lost more than $US316m ($434m). Trump dismissed the report as “totally fake news”.

In 2010, Trump received a $US73m tax refund after claiming heavy losses, but this is being audited by the taxman and he could be forced to pay more than $US100m to the US government.

There are more obvious signs of his chequered business record. In the early 1990s, Trump operated three casinos in Atlantic City. Two are now under new ownership, while the famous Trump Plaza stands derelict after it was closed in 2014. It is set to be demolished on January 29, nine days after Trump officially leaves the White House. The Trump name has been removed from the boarded-up building.

Billionaire investor Carl Icahn took control of the property in 2016 when he bought Trump Entertainment Resorts out of bankruptcy — the last of several used to save the company from collapsing under mountains of debt.

Trump’s Scottish golf courses do not appear to have fared much better. Accounts at Companies House reveal that his Turnberry resort, an Open Championship venue, has lost a cumulative £43m ($78m) since Trump took control in 2014, including a £10.8m loss in 2018, the last available set of accounts. His course in Aberdeen has failed to turn a profit since opening in 2012, racking up losses of £9m.

The company has plans, approved last year, to build 550 houses on the 566ha estate and hopes to build a second golf course.

The Wall Street Journal claimed in April that global lockdowns were costing The Trump Organisation’s properties more than $US1m in lost revenue a day. The company took advantage of government furlough schemes as hotels shut.

Forbes estimated that month that the President’s net worth had dropped by $US1bn to US$2.1bn, based on falls in the values of stocks similar to his businesses.

Last year, the Trump Organisation quietly shut down its helicopter charter business that operated out of Turnberry, having already lost £1m on the venture. It was set up to “connect the three dots” of his courses in Scotland and in Doonbeg, Ireland. There were reports of “eye-watering” fees for customers, said to be charged as much as £15,000 for trips.

Trump supporters rally in Washington on Sunday. His base is likely to give him oppportunities in the media next year. Picture: AFP

After his addiction to debt-fuelled purchases in the 1990s, Trump turned to lucrative licensing deals. In 2004, he became the star of the US version of The Apprentice, reportedly raking in $US427m from starring on the reality show until 2015. He earned $US197m directly from appearing on the show — he was entitled to half the profits — as well as a further $US230m from licensing deals, sponsorships and seminars, reports have said.

There is feverish speculation about Trump’s next steps, which might include a $US100m book deal.

Nigel Farage, the former Ukip leader who spoke at a Trump rally in Arizona last month, says he expects the president to try to remain the Republican leader before launching a bid to return to the White House in 2024. In the interim, that would allow him to launch his own media empire, he said.

“There’s no reason why he can’t lead the Republican Party and do a media thing of some kind,” said Farage.

“He’s just got 72 million to vote for him. The enthusiasm for Trumpism is just mega.

“His biggest success in the last 20 years was television. The Apprentice was a massive commercial success so it’s got to be television, and I personally believe he’ll launch his own thing,” Farage added. “If there was a primetime evening show with Donald Trump, the ratings would be off the charts.”

Trump supporters outside the Governor's Mansion in St Paul, Minnesota, on Sunday. Picture: Getty Images/AFP

Public relations specialist Mark Borkowski agreed. “He’s set up this dialogue about the ‘fake news media’. He could easily set up something that is an extreme Fox (News) and a newspaper group — and he would get the backing to do it.

“Donald Trump has always defied people, but if he’s going to lose his status on Twitter, this man is a fighter. He could raise significant money to create a whole new media universe.”

There is normally a conveyor belt for former presidents that runs from the White House to Wall Street’s biggest investment banks, who fork out millions of dollars to hear about the Oval Office’s inner workings — but the unorthodox Trump is unlikely to take that route.

“If he wanted to make money, he doesn’t need Goldman Sachs or JP Morgan to pay him,” said Farage. “He could advertise his own thing and get 100,000 people there. I was in those crowds. They would crawl over broken glass to go and meet him and hear him.”

A report from the US news website Axios last week suggested that Trump is already working on a plan to build his own digital media channel to rival Fox News that would stream online. It claimed he planned to charge fans a monthly fee.

That might be good news for Milne and his neighbours on the Menie estate, but it is bad news for Trump critics hoping to see a quiet exit.

The Sunday Times