Donald Trump to tap his wallet for probe of 'forged' document?

Donald Trump

Despite his continued assertions that Obama's birth certificate is a forgery, billionaire Donald Trump has refused to contribute financially to Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio's law-enforcement investigation into Obama's eligibility to be president.

Michael Cohen, executive vice president and special counsel to Trump, told WND it was "highly unlikely" Trump would be making a financial contribution to the Cold Case Posse conducting the investigation under Arpaio's direction.

Brian Reilly, the member of the Tea Party of Surprise, Ariz., who initiated the request for an Obama investigation, shared with WND six emails he sent to Trump asking for a financial contribution.

Freshly updated! Find out what Obama's story truly is, in "Where's the REAL Birth Certificate?" by Jerome Corsi.

"I was just made aware of a news report that mentioned that you still wanted a further investigation into President Barack Obama's Certificate of Live Birth," Reilly emailed Trump on Oct. 21.

"If you are truly concerned about discovering the truth about the Obama birth certificate, I would respectfully request that you consider making a generous tax-deductible financial donation to this effort."

As WND has reported, Trump, in an interview with the Fox News Channel's Greta Van Susteren, had just questioned the authenticity of the Obama birth certificate once again.

"I don't know just how it miraculously appeared ... all of a sudden after years and years it was produced out of nowhere," Trump said. "In fact, if it's not 100 percent, he's not supposed to be president of the country."

Trump said people "have real questions about the validity."

A few days later, on Oct. 26, Trump explained to CNN's Piers Morgan that he was not yet convinced the long-form birth certificate released by the White House on April 27 was authentic.

"My gut tells me a couple things," Trump explained. "Number 1, you know, it took a long time to produce this certificate, and when it came out, as you know, check the Internet, many people say it is not real, you know, that it's a forgery."

Reilly told WND he was frustrated by Trump's continued refusal to put his money where his mouth is.

"We are disappointed and perplexed that we at the Surprise Tea Party have not received a single reply to our numerous emails," Reilly told WND.

"If Mr. Trump truly believes that Barack Obama's birth certificate warrants further investigation, we would respectfully ask Mr. Trump to consider making the success of the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office Cold Case Posse investigation his top priority. Actions speak louder than words."

Trump's dollars favor Democrats

Trump contributed $50,000 to former White House chief-of-staff Rahm Emanuel in the recent Chicago mayoral election contest, ahead of the implementation of regulations that change the amount an individual is permitted to contribute to a state or municipal candidate from an unlimited amount to a cap of $5,000 per candidate.

Trump also employs Rahm Emanuel's brother, Avi Emanuel, as an agent.

"'Deal' would be the best word to describe the relationship among Rahm, Ari, and Trump," wrote Chicago biographer Carol Felsenthal in Chicago Magazine in April. "First, the Rahm connection: Trump, who opened the Trump International Hotel and Tower here in 2008 and will undoubtedly hope to add another pastel namesake to Chicago's skyline, recognized that Rahm will soon be running the nation's third largest city. Why wouldn't he want to curry favor?"

Regarding Ari Emanual, Felsenthal commented, "As for Ari, pit-bull co-CEO of William Morris Endeavor Entertainment and the model for Jeremy Piven's Airi Gold in HBO's 'Entourage,' he seems made-to-order for Trump who has called the younger Emanuel a 'close friend.' Why wouldn't the boldest, hyper-active builder (and host of NBC's 'The Apprentice') and the boldest, hyper-active agent get together?"

Chicago commentator, attorney Brian C. Thomas, speculated in print last May that Trump would stand to gain if Rahm Emanuel succeeds in his continuing push to get Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn to support legislation that would allow Chicago to open casino gambling.

"Is a casino coming to Trump Tower?" Thomas asked in a May article published in Chicago Magazine.

Trump has a history of donating predominantly to Democratic Party candidates.

"The Democratic recipients of Trump's donations make up what looks like a Republican enemies list, including former senator Hillary Rodham Clinton (N.Y.), Sen. John F. Kerry (Mass.), Rep. Charles B. Rangel (N.Y.), Sen. Charles E. Schumer (N.Y.), and the late liberal lion Edward M. Kennedy (Mass.)," wrote Washington Post reporters Dan Eggen and T. W. Farnam in an April article documenting Democrat favoritism in Trump's political donation history.

Eggen and Farnam documented that the biggest recipient of Trump political contributions has been the Democratic Senate Campaign Committee of New York, which has taken in more than $125,000 from Trump and his companies.

"Overall, Trump has given nearly $600,000 to New York state campaigns, with more than two-thirds going to Democrats," the Washington Post reporters noted.

NBC renews Trump show for $160 million

Immediately following the April 27 White House press conference announcing the release of Obama's birth certificate, Trump landed in Portsmouth, N.H., and gave a press conference in which he took credit for forcing Obama's hand.

"Today, I'm very proud of myself, because I've accomplished something that no one else has been able to accomplish," Trump told the press. "Our president has finally released a birth certificate."

At that time, Trump was entertaining a decision to run for president as a Republican, a decision Trump said he would announce once NBC's "Celebrity Apprentice" season was over.

"Look, I'm already leading the polls, and I'm not running," Trump said. "I think I'd beat Obama."

Then, on May 15, NBC announced its decision to renew Trump's television show.

The following day, May 16, Trump announced he had decided not to run for president.

"I maintain the strong conviction that if I were to run, I would be able to win the primary and ultimately, the general election," Trump said in a statement reported by ABC News. "I have spent the past several months unofficially campaigning and recognize that running for public office cannot be done half heartedly. Ultimately, however, business is my greatest passion, and I am not ready to leave the private sector."

ABC further reported that in 11th hour negotiations between NBC and Trump, the network had lined up three years worth of sponsors for the television show, contingent upon Trump hosting it himself. The requirement would make it impossible for Trump to run for president or to serve in office if elected.

Who's Trump's daddy?

"Those who thought Donald Trump's chatter about running for president was merely a ploy to extort more money out of NBC for 'Celebrity Apprentice' may have had their 'toldja' moment," wrote screenplay writer and media critic Robert Seldman. "According to the New York Post, NBC is ponying up $160 million to Mark Burnett productions and Donald Trump for two more years of 'Celebrity Apprentice.' According to the story, Trump will personally pocket $65 million per year, a sizable boost over his current contract."

WND founder and CEO Joseph Farah has raised the question whether Trump is secretly working for Obama.

"I think I have an insight," Farah wrote July 19. "Don't listen to a thing [Trump] says. He has no problem with Barack Obama. In fact, I have absolute conviction that he is doing Obama's bidding."

Obama's influence over the NBC decision was certainly within reach, given that even after the Comcast acquisition, GE continues to own 49 percent of NBC, according to an analysis published by CNN Money.

Obama has continued to support his appointment of GE CEO Jeffrey Immelt to head the White House jobs council, even though GE paid no federal income taxes in 2010.

Responding to a reporter who asked whether Obama was "bothered" by GE's tax avoidance strategy, White House press secretary Jay Carney defended GE by claiming its practice was just "part of the problem with the corporate tax structure that companies hire armies of lawyers to understand how it works and to take advantage of the various loopholes that are legal in order to reduce their tax burden."

Trump at it all over again

In a Dec. 5 conference call with reporters, WND asked Trump why, if he believes defeating Obama is so significant in 2012, doesn't he use his influence to mount a formal investigation into Obama's eligibility.

"A lot of people agree with me and find it amazing," Trump responded. "It's miraculous how this birth certificate just appeared."

Trump said many people have questioned the birth certificate's authenticity.

"It's strange that after years all of a sudden it appears," Trump mused. "How come there are no records his mother ever was in the hospital?"

He noted there are records of other births in the Hawaii hospital at the time.

"There's no record of Obama or his mother," he said.

Trump added that members of Obama's own family have pointed to different hospitals in Hawaii as being his birth location, and his grandmother reportedly made statements linking his birth to Kenya.

"I have real questions [about Obama's eligibility]," he said.

But he said he's working to rebuild the country's job-creating ability and is not focusing on Obama's eligibility right now.

"I also know that Obama is totally protected by the press, unfairly so, I would say," he said.

"They protect him like I've never seen anything protected," he said. "He's protected like a landmark in New York."

Trump said, after all, should the allegations about Obama prove true, it "basically is a violation of the law."

But then, deflecting attention from the authenticity of Obama's birth certificate, Trump said his work now is to provide solutions to the job problem.

In recent weeks, Trump has again indicated he might yet be a candidate for president, this time suggesting he might run as an independent.

In a commentary, Farah said Trump's motivations remain suspect.

"Here's my theory," Farah wrote. "Trump is a very successful businessman for whom there's never enough money. I don't think he has any interest in politics beyond what it can do for his enterprises. I actually think he may have been involved in shaking Obama down for something he wanted with that birth certificate charade. Because he got cold feet when Obama released the phony birth certificate, now Obama is shaking him down."

Farah continued with his analysis that the tables have now turned on Trump, noting: "To get whatever it is [Trump] wants from Obama and company, he may be asked to throw the 2012 election into chaos by running as an independent."

How to contribute to Arpaio's investigation

Those wishing to contribute to the 501(c)3 supporting the Cold Case Posse investigation may send tax-deductible donations to the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office at: MCSO Cold Case Posse, P.O. Box 74374, Phoenix, Ariz., 85087.

WND has begun today a banner ad campaign permitting those wanting to make after-tax contributions to the MCSO Cold Case Posse to do so by credit card.