Donald Trump on Thursday denied that he has ever done business in Cuba following a Newsweek report that that the Trump Hotels and Casino Resorts broke the Cuba embargo by paying a consulting firm to explore business opportunities there.
“No. I never did business in Cuba,” Trump told New Hampshire television station NH1 when asked about the Newsweek report. “There’s this guy who has very bad reputation as a reporter. You see what his record is. He wrote something about me in Cuba. No I never did anything in Cuba. I never did a deal in Cuba. I heard about it last night for the first time.”
Newsweek’s Kurt Eichenwald reported on Thursday that Trump Hotels and Casino Resorts paid at least $68,000 to the Seven Arrows Investment and Development Corporation to spend money in Cuba without approval from the U.S. government. Trump was aware of the Cuba trip, according to Newsweek.
When asked about the Newsweek report Thursday on ABC’s “The View,” Trump campaign manager Kellyanne Conway said that if Trump spent money in Cuba, it would not be “treasonous.”
“The question is: ‘Did he spend money?’ He’s very critical of Cuba, he’s very critical of Castro, and he’s been critical,” Conway said. “He gave a speech the very next year to the Cuban-American National foundation of Miami critical of those who want to do business with Castro, and he’s talked about the Cuban Embargo even on this [campaign] trail.”
“But again, we’re talking about, ‘Did his hotel invest money in 1998 in Cuba?’ No,” she added.
Correction: This article mistakenly reported that the Trump Organization reportedly explored business opportunities in Cuba. However, it was reported that Trump Hotels and Casino Reports looked into doing business in Cuba.
I’d bet there are documents out there showing his minions worked with a group that was working to develop business opportunities in Iran in the last few years. I’m sure he’ll be all over the next Pyongyang golf resort, too.
This is one report that, if it can be further substantiated, could really hurt him. It won’t hurt him with his absolute die-hard core supporters, but given the hatred in the GOP to thawing relations with Cuba- especially among Cubanos- he could get burned by this.
“Doing business in” and “spending money in” Cuba are two different things. The report says HO spent money seeking investment opportunities – not that he actually operated a business there. HO (and all conservatives) just love these word games – for some reason, they seem to think it makes them appear clever. It does not.
Plus, as Lawrence said last night…Donald said he didn’t do business, Don Corleone could say he didn’t murder anyone.
Which is the question he did not answer.