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Trump has to sell autographed Tim Tebow helmet, according to ruling

December 19, 2018 | | Print Article
(WikiMedia Public Domain)

During the height of former Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow’s career in the National Football League back in 2012, current President Donald Trump paid $12,000 at a charity auction for a Broncos helmet autographed by the world-renowned athlete.

He made the purchase through the Donald J. Trump Foundation, a New York-based private charity foundation that the president launched 30 years ago to help those in need.

But thanks to a successful lawsuit filed by New York Attorney General Barbara Underwood against the president’s foundation, he will no longer own this piece of NFL history.

As part of an agreement reached this week, the foundation must sell off its assets and donate the proceeds, a spokesperson for Underwood has confirmed with The Washington Post.

Included among the assets the foundation must sell are the helmet and two portraits of Trump. While the foundation reportedly paid $12,000 for the helmet and $30,000 for the portraits, it’s expected to only recoup roughly $975, all of which must be donated to good causes.

This isn’t to say that the New York attorney general’s lawsuit against the foundation is over yet. It’s not. Filed in June, the suit accuses the foundation of “persistently illegal conduct.”

According to Underwood, since at least 1987 the foundation has allegedly been wasting collected donations on non-charitable causes, including paying for campaign events. She’s reportedly seeking $2.8 million in restitution.

“In 2016, state investigators allege, Trump effectively ‘ceded control’ of his charity to his political campaign. He raised more than $2 million at a fundraiser in Iowa that flowed into the foundation. Then, the state said, Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski determined when and where it would be given away,” the Post reported, citing the AG’s claims.

Federal law reportedly prohibits charity organizations from participating in political campaigns. In fairness to the president, he has repeatedly expressed his displeasure with this law.

Trump has made it clear on social media he has no intention of ever settling the current suit.

Regarding Tebow’s helmet, it’s not clear whether the president is upset about it being sold. In a statement to the post, the foundation’s attorney claimed it’s been trying to sell its assets since 2016.

“The Foundation has been seeking to dissolve and distribute its remaining assets to worthwhile charitable causes since Donald J. Trump’s victory in the 2016 Presidential election,” attorney Alan Futerfas said. “Unfortunately, the NYAG sought to prevent dissolution for almost two years, thereby depriving those most in need.”

He added that over the course of its 30-year existence, the foundation has donated $19 million to charities. Of those $19 million, $8.25 million came directly from Trump himself.

The evidence suggests that though the Donald J. Trump Foundation may have used some of its funds for non-charitable events and items, most of its money was indeed spent on charity.

The same may not necessarily be said of the Clinton Foundation. Formed by former President Bill Clinton in 1997, after the foundation reportedly raised “billions” for the devastating earthquake that rocked Haiti in 2010, much of that money either disappeared or was wasted.

HERE’S WHAT YOU’RE MISSING …

“By all accounts, the money and what it was meant to do never really reached the Haitian people,” the San Francisco Bay View, a Bay Area paper that focuses on racial inequality and political repression, reported two years ago.

“While the Clinton Foundation puts only 10 percent of its donations towards charity, the IHRC was a real racket for Clinton pals. Only 1 percent went towards Haitian groups and agencies on the ground. All that is transparent is that the money didn’t go to Haiti; beyond that the trail goes cold.”

Yet as of late 2018, the foundation still reportedly remained active and wasn’t under investigation by any state attorneys general.

“Why?” many on social media wanted to know.

HERE’S WHAT YOU’RE MISSING …

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Vivek Saxena
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