“A recent article somewhere said Donald Trump is a world-class businessman who goes out and he does get along with everybody,” said Donald Trump early in Thursday’s Republican debate in Detroit. The only “recent article somewhere” I can find where this is true is a December 29 Washington Post article. In the Post story, Trump is indeed described as a “world-class businessman”—by Trump himself.
Trump’s Republican rivals Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio spent a great chunk of the debate trying to disabuse primary voters of the idea that Trump is anything but a low-class huckster. The result was that the GOP frontrunner became flustered as he tried to defend what has been one of his greatest assets: his business record.
“He has spent a career of convincing Americans that he’s something that he’s not in exchange for their money,” said Rubio, picking up where he left off in last week’s Houston debate. “Now he’s trying to do the same in exchange for their country.”
Rubio went after Trump for having his line of clothing made overseas and said that if Trump wanted to create jobs, “he can start tonight by announcing that all the Donald Trump clothing will no longer be made in China and in Mexico, but will be made here in the United States.”
When pressed by moderator Chris Wallace, Trump promised to begin making his clothing in this country and asserted he’s actually been “doing it more and more.” He also protested that currency devaluation in other countries like China made it “impossible” for clothing manufacturers to operate in the U.S. Rubio shot back that his own campaign’s apparel is made in America. “The reason why he makes it in China or Mexico is because he can make more money on it. That’s why he’s doing it,” Rubio said.
The Florida senator also went after Trump over Trump University, the for-profit business course company that thousands for former clients are now suing for fraud. “People borrowed money, and they signed up for this fake university,” Rubio said. “And, these people owe all this money now, and they got nothing in return for it, but you are willing to say whatever you had to say to get them to give you their money.”
After some meek protests from Trump, moderator Megyn Kelly jumped in to explain some of the details of the Trump University lawsuit. Her summary was brutal and left Trump attempting to interrupt the Fox host to slow her down. It didn’t work. Read the entire exchange:
As the aphorism goes, if you’re explaining, you’re losing, especially when what you’re explaining a massive civil suit against your company that claims you defrauded thousands of people for millions of dollars.
And Cruz, who overall delivered a stellar debate performance, was able to prosecute better than anyone else the case against Trump as the general-election candidate to run against Hillary Clinton. “The stakes in this election are too high. For seven years, millions of Americans, we’ve been struggling, wages have been stagnating, people are hurting, our constitutional rights are under assault,” Cruz said. “And if we nominate Donald, we’re going to spend the spring, the fall, and the summer with the Republican nominee facing a fraud trial.”
Trump’s response was pathetic. “It’s a minor civil case,” he said.
The case is anything but minor, as the week’s most recent news from the suit demonstrates. But give Trump credit for this: it may be the first time the Donald has understated rather than outrageously exaggerated an aspect of his business career.
