Trump Foundation Broke Rules on Self-Dealing, Tax Documents Show

Donald Trump's charity apparently admitted to "self-dealing"—a.k.a. spending money on things benefiting the Trump family or businesses—in tax documents posted to a charity monitor's website and by the Tuesday morning.first reported onWashington Post

The Trump Foundation was a source of constant controversy during the presidential campaign, thanks in no small part to the Post's tireless reporting. The family charity has been criticized for making political contributions (mistakenly, Trump claims) to Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi, spending money on a football helmet autographed by Tim Tebow and large portraits of Trump himself, and paying people as a result of lawsuits against Trump or his companies. It also lacked the proper permit to solicit donations in the State of New York.

It's not clear what specific acts of self-dealing the Trump Foundation was referencing, but in the tax documents, it admitted that it had engaged in self-dealing in 2015 and previous years, even though it had not previously disclosed any such acts. (Trump, as is typical, did not explain the admission on the forms when asked for comment by the Post.) These sorts of violations can result in the beneficiaries of the self-dealing to pay the charity back or pay extra taxes.

During the presidential election, Trump repeatedly criticized his opponent Hillary Clinton's own charitable foundation, calling it a "vast criminal enterprise" that created conflicts of interest while she was secretary of state. Now that the dust has settled, Trump is no longer calling for her prosecution for any crimes—and the admission that the Trump Foundation violated the rules can't hurt his chances of entering the White House.