Muammar al-Qaddafi was one of the most brutal dictators in modern history. He supported terrorism throughout North Africa and the Middle East. He was behind the downing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland. He was a murderer, a terrorist, and an eccentric tyrant.
Guess which GOP bigmouth once tried to do business with him, terrorism or no terrorism?
Buzzfeed has learned that in 2009, Qaddafi was in New York to attend the United Nations General Assembly. He was anxious to find a place to house his entourage in high Bedouin style. He approached the city of New York to try to rent park space, but was turned down.
His people searched for large estates nearby where his staff could stay for two weeks while his tent was made ready. They couldn’t seem to find anybody willing to rent to a murderer.
At last, they found one estate owner that would overlook the bloody hands of the renter. Donald Trump was just fine with it.
As it turned out, the local authorities decided not to allow the brutal leader to stay in town and Qaddafi was forced to spend the nights in Manhattan.
Trump made light of the situation, calling it “a big joke.” He bragged about how much money he was paid. In his usual elegant way, Trump said:
“I don’t want to use the word ‘screwed,’ but I screwed him.”
That’s not quite the whole story. Buzzfeed is also reporting that his reason for renting to Qaddafi in the first place was (surprise) for business. Trump had hoped to entice the strongman into providing investment backing for one of his many projects.
The people who spoke to Buzzfeed did so anonymously and weren’t able to say what the business was, or if there was even a specific plan in mind.
At any rate, Qaddafi’s people stayed in Trump’s house for two weeks, but the dictator never made it. Town officials objected to the ostentatious giant tent in their upscale community and ordered it to be taken down. The dictator was forced to sleep in a Manhattan hotel.
Trump didn’t succeed in doing business with Muammar al-Qaddafi. He tried though, and that is what is so incredibly disturbing. In 2009, Donald Trump was willing to rent out his house and property to a known terrorist, purely in the hope that he could make himself even more cash.
So when Trump talks about how tough he’s going to be on terrorists, just remember this story. Remember that Donald J. Trump was willing to overlook the bombing of an American airline full of innocent civilians if it meant getting more cash into his own filthy pockets.
