Trump’s Failed Business Ventures And His Thick Skull

Empowering Weak & Oppressed

Askia Wejd

Ramadan 11, 1447 2026-03-01

News & Analysis

by Askia Wejd (News & Analysis, Crescent International Vol. 56, No. 1, Ramadan, 1447)

Most observers of America’s political circus agree that Donald Trump is a certified moron bereft of logic and rational thinking. They say, with good reason, that he is a crook—he has been convicted by a US court on 34 felony charges—a compulsive liar, paedophile, rapist and an absolute bully.

All these make a pretty long and damnable list of undesirable personality traits. Trump of course would vehemently deny and insist, as he has done on several occasions, that he is a “stable genius”. He also insists that he knows more about finance, business, politics and infrasructure than anybody else. And he is adamant that he has met more people than there are people in the world.

These are two very divergent assessments of a person who continues to dominate headlines in the US on a daily basis. Trump has also provided much grist to the evening talk shows. They love him for he provides ample material and find it irresitible not to poke fun at him.

His supporters would say that Trump won a convincing victory in the US persidential elections in November 2024. True, but what that proves is that his supporters are just as thick as the candidate they supported and ‘elected’. Trump once boasted that he could shoot a person in the street in broad daylight and his supporters would still vote for him!

Let us consider just one example. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Trump said at a press conference that if people drank Colorox—a chemical substance used for cleaning sinks and toilets—it will kill the virus inside their body and cure them.

Literally tens of thousands of Americans consumed the poisonous chemical and got really sick. If people are so stupid that they would consume a poisonous chemical, then it should not be surprising that they would elect someone like Trump as president. His support base is beyond redemption although serious cracks have started to emerge in it.

Trump’s mental state and business acumen must be assessed against his record. There is a very long list of businesses that he established. They all failed. It would take several pages to list all of them but for readers interested in knowing their names, they can find them here and here.

Best known for his hotels and resorts with ‘Trump Tower’ plastered at the front in big bold letters because Trump is such a narcissist, he also ventured into other businesses. All of them failed.

These included but are not limited to Trump Casinos, Trump Airline, Trump Shuttle, GoTrump.com, Trump Steaks, Trump Vodka, Trump Ice, Trump Homes, Trump Mortgage, Trump Network, Trump University, Trump Institute and Trump Frangrances. Notice how every business carried Trump’s name.

Trump Casinos

From the Trump Taj Mahal to Trump Plaza, the casinos promised extravagance and tried to play on patrons’ ego projecting their importance. Instead, the casinos lost tons of money. “The Taj Mahal alone filed for bankruptcy multiple times before closing in 2016,” according to Owen Chase writing in the aol.com.

Trump Castle and Trump World’s Fair suffered the same fate. Chase found that “these ventures highlight a pattern: high-profile launches, overwhelming debt, and eventual fire-sale exits under new names.”

If there were Trump casinos, people needed to travel to them from across the vast expanse of the United States. Along came Trump Airline and Trump Shuttle to facilitate travel. To purchase tickets, Trump set up GoTrump.com, a travel agency in the competitive travel market. All went belly up shortly after being launched.

Trump Steaks

The glutton that he is—Trump is known to pig on Big Macs—he thought his steaks would be a sizzling success. Touted as a luxury food item with Trump himself bragging that these were the ‘best steaks ever’, they never took off. After barely two months, the brand was pulled from the market. The retailer’s CEO later confirmed they had “literally sold almost no steaks” despite the publicity push.

To go with the steaks, Trump also launched Trump Vodka and Trump Ice, a water bottling brand. Like the steaks, these also collapsed shortly after launch.

Trump University

Two of his more hilarious projects were the ‘Trump University’ and ‘Trump Institute’. Not known for reading even one-page briefings by his intelligence agencies, the launch of Trump University was a money-making racket. It was marketed as an “insider education in real estate”. The university, however, operated without accreditation and was staffed by instructors with little to no industry success.

It was quickly engulfed in lawsuits alleging fraud and deceptive practices. In 2017, the non-university ended in a $25 million settlement and closed the venture that left thousands of people defrauded of money.

Trump Institute

The Trump Institute shared a similar fate as the university. Its mission was to teach the “Trump way” of real estate success. What success? Throughout his life, Trump has been involved in fraudulent deals in which he bilked people out of millions of dollars.

Operating between 2005 and 2009, the Institute offered seminars and workshops, often featuring promotional videos of Trump himself. However, controversies plagued the institute, including allegations of plagiarized materials, misleading marketing practices, and prioritizing profit over genuine education. Not surprisingly, it folded like the university.

Trump also ventured into mortgages, furniture and fragrances. They all bit the dust in short order as did his other ventures.

How about Trump Toilet?

While his previous ventures failed, we think ‘Trump Toilet’ will do roaring business. Toilets are a vital necessity of life that help people relieve themselves. Imagine a Trump toilet with his face painted on it and his mouth aligned with the opening of the bowl. People will eagerly download into it.

That’s an idea whose time has come and the orange orangutan in the White House should adopt it. In fact, he should install Trump toilets at every street corner in every US city. People will be eternally grateful. He could even make a deal with New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani who has announced installing toilets in New York City.

Imagine New York’s son coming to the rescue of his city of birth!