The paper former President Donald Trump provided to prove he had the dough to buy the Buffalo Bills was a Forbes Magazine listicle of rich celebrities, according to a new report.
The strange financial filing was revealed Tuesday in the New York City civil courtroom where Trump and his family are being tried for fraud by Attorney General Letitia James, the Associated Press reports.
Internal emails between Trump, the NFL, and skeptical Morgan Stanley bankers were submitted as evidence to explore the former “Apprentice” host’s failed efforts to buy the Bills in 2014.
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“He probably does have the dough,” wrote Morgan Stanley banker Jeffrey Holzschuh. “[You] never know the real facts with him.”
At the time, Trump put his worth at $8 billion but refused to file financial records to prove it until he was the last bidder standing, the report states.
That was looking unlikely because of Trump’s former casino holdings and the part he played in.
But Trump was urged to keep his hat in the ring to encourage more likely Bills bidders, such as the ultimately successful owners of the Buffalo Sabres and a group led by Jon Bon Jovi, the Associated Press reports
They never considered him a serious bidder,” Trump’s attorney Chris Kise said in court Tuesday. “They took him in to use his name to bid up the price.”
Among those
bankers was ex-Morgan Stanley Managing Director K. Don Cornwell, who testified about Trump’s presentation on his bid. Which included copies of the Forbes magazine list.
The report does not say which list Trump showed the bankers, but it was likely not this Forbes rich-and-famous ranking from 2014 that includes John Hamm, Kerry Washington and Bruno Mars.
It notes, “Among the drop-offs this year are…Donald Trump, Rachael Ray, Amy Poehler, Alec Baldwin, David Letterman, Kristin Stewart, Louis C.K., and Adam Sandler.”
