Deutch, Frankel go after Trump over his foundation and taxes

Democratic members of Congress from Broward and Palm Beach counties said Wednesday that Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump deserves heightened scrutiny over what they depicted as shady dealings involving his foundation and his continued refusal to release his tax returns.

“Using the foundation in this way is illegal and these revelations are damning, and it is important that everyone understand what’s going on and howit’s so consistent with how he’s approached his business life,” saidU.S. Rep. Ted Deutch.

The comments from Deutch, U.S. Rep. Lois Frankel and former Florida House Democratic Leader Dan Gelber of Miami Beach on a conference call organized by the Democratic Party, come just five days before Trump and Lois Frankel Democrat Hillary Clinton meet in their first debate and as public opinion polls show the contest for Florida’s 29 electoral votes is a dead heat. The RealClearPolitics average of Florida polls has Clinton and Trump tied at 45 percent.

Deutch focused on the way Trump has run his foundation. The Washington Post published an investigation Tuesday revealing that Trump used the charitable foundation in ways that benefit Trump’s personal interests.

Already known was an illegal campaign contribution from the Trump foundation to FloridaAttorney General Pam Bondi at about the time her office decided not to pursue complaints about the now defunct Trump University. Deutch described Trump University, which purported to teach people how to make real estate investments, as a “fake university Deutch scam.”

“Donald Trump has used his foundationmoneyto advance his own interests, his personal interests, and has done so in a way that appears to have violated the law,” Deutch said. He pointed to findings in the Washington Post investigation thatTrumpsettled lawsuits involving his for-profit businesses by using $250,000 of foundation moneytomake donations to particular charities.

One case detailed in the investigation involved Trump’s Mar-aLago Club in Palm Beach. He faced $120,000 in fines fromthe town of Palm Beach, which waived the fines in exchange for a $100,000 donation to a veterans’ charity.

In a statement Tuesday night, Trump spokesman Jason Miller said “therewas not, and could not be, any intent or motive for the Trump Foundation to make improper payments. ...

“Mr. Trump is generous Trump both with his money and with his time. He has provided millions of dollars to fund his foundation and a multitude of other charitable causes,” Miller said, complaining about what he called inaccuracies, omissions and bias on the part of the newspaper. His statement didn’t offer specifics.

Frankel continued longstanding Democratic criticismsoverTrump’s failure torelease hisincometax returns, which she called “an evasion fromthe truth.”

She said she was in New York on Tuesday and a businessman, whom she declined to identify, speculated that the tax returns would either show that Trump hasn’t paid taxes in a long time or is inflating the value of real estate deals for tax purposes. She wondered if his tax returns would show “shady business deals” with foreign interests.

Frankel didn’t offer any evidence. “The question is what is he hiding,” she said. “We shouldn’t even have to speculate. I don’t like speculating. Voters deserve to know.”