Donald Trump has built his campaign on his reputation as a leading businessman. In contrast to his opponent, he has no political experience, making him either a clueless outsider or the perfect man to drain the swamp of corruption in Washington, D.C. Unfortunately for his campaign, recent first person testimonials about his business practices may be tarnishing his strongest selling point.
Thomas M. Wells, a New York attorney who formerly worked for Mr. Trump, has spoken out about his experiences with the candidate. In 1987, Mr. Wells was impressed by Trump’s business skills and assets, including a helicopter, corporate tower and chain of casinos. The shine quickly faded as Mr. Wells spent time with Trump.
Although their face-to-face interactions were limited, Wells has never forgotten them. He found Trump to be a serial liar willing to exaggerate his personal wealth and a philander who bragged about the extramarital attention he received from young women. Given Trump’s history of threatening to sue everyone he dislikes, including the New York Times, his former attorney may be in for another round of legal dealings with Mr. Trump, this time from the opposite side of the table.
Of course, Wells is not the only person to associate with Trump and come away with a negative impression. Numerous women have stepped forward to accuse him of unwanted sexual advances, contractors have claimed Trump stiffed them out of pay and even his campaign is suspected of skipping out on its bills.
All of this negative attention has been having an effect on Trump’s business, with attendance at his hotels down to a record low. When the election ends and the dust settles, he may discover that he’s permanently damaged his business brand over the past 18 months. Luckily for the legal profession, it’s unlikely that Trump will ever stop needing an army of lawyers. Perhaps he will insist on a stronger NDA contract to keep them from publicly criticizing him in the future.