Trump's bad bet: How too much debt drove his biggest casino aground

The Washington Post2016-01-18

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Reporting cited here

documented
The project was financed through high-yield debt carrying demanding repayment terms.
Financing, analyst warning, contractors, bankruptcy, and bondholders
Taj Mahal high-yield bond financing: The record · The record
documented
Trump developed, controlled, and promoted the Taj Mahal financing and opening.
Financing, analyst warning, contractors, bankruptcy, and bondholders
Taj Mahal high-yield bond financing: The record · The record
reported
The analyst lost his position after publishing the unfavorable assessment.
Financing, analyst warning, contractors, bankruptcy, and bondholders
Taj Mahal analyst-warning dispute: Affected group · Affected group
documented
Retaliation pressure followed an adverse financial analysis, and the reporting documents it. The analysis itself remained a forecast, not a legal finding.
Financing, analyst warning, contractors, bankruptcy, and bondholders
Taj Mahal analyst-warning dispute: Audit finding · Cited analysis
reported
The cited record concerns private-employer conduct and does not establish a government censorship violation.
Financing, analyst warning, contractors, bankruptcy, and bondholders
Taj Mahal analyst-warning dispute: Evidentiary limit · Evidentiary limit
reported
After an analyst issued a warning about the casino's debt capacity, Trump demanded action from the analyst's employer and the analyst was dismissed.
Financing, analyst warning, contractors, bankruptcy, and bondholders
Taj Mahal analyst-warning dispute: The record · The record
documented
Trump personally pressed the analyst's employer after the Taj Mahal warning.
Financing, analyst warning, contractors, bankruptcy, and bondholders
Taj Mahal analyst-warning dispute: The record · The record
documented
Project contractors were left out of pocket, and the record documents it. Individual claims varied, and some were resolved through settlements.
Financing, analyst warning, contractors, bankruptcy, and bondholders
Taj Mahal contractor payment disputes: Audit finding · Cited analysis
reported
Trump opened the Taj Mahal after construction financed with substantial high-yield debt.
Financing, analyst warning, contractors, bankruptcy, and bondholders
Taj Mahal contractor payment disputes: The record · The record
documented
Trump controlled and promoted the Taj Mahal development whose contractors reported payment disputes.
Financing, analyst warning, contractors, bankruptcy, and bondholders
Taj Mahal contractor payment disputes: The record · The record
reported
The casino opened but needed unusually strong daily operating performance to service the debt.
Financing, analyst warning, contractors, bankruptcy, and bondholders
Taj Mahal high-yield bond financing: Affected group · Affected group
documented
The casino opened on financing that created a documented repayment burden, and that burden preceded its restructuring.
Financing, analyst warning, contractors, bankruptcy, and bondholders
Taj Mahal high-yield bond financing: Audit finding · Cited analysis
reported
Trump promoted the Taj Mahal as a major completed casino resort and business achievement.
Financing, analyst warning, contractors, bankruptcy, and bondholders
Taj Mahal high-yield bond financing: Promised · Promised
reported
Contractors and suppliers reported that invoices were unpaid, delayed, or settled for less than claimed.
Financing, analyst warning, contractors, bankruptcy, and bondholders
Taj Mahal contractor payment disputes: Affected group · Affected group
reported
The affected claims differed in documentation and resolution, and the reporting does not establish identical treatment for every contractor.
Financing, analyst warning, contractors, bankruptcy, and bondholders
Taj Mahal contractor payment disputes: Evidentiary limit · Evidentiary limit
documented
The restructuring contradicted the launch's financial-success promise. The casino kept operating and Trump retained an ownership interest.
Financing, analyst warning, contractors, bankruptcy, and bondholders
Taj Mahal debt restructuring: Audit finding · Cited analysis
documented
Trump Taj Mahal Associates filed for Chapter 11 protection under a negotiated restructuring plan.
Financing, analyst warning, contractors, bankruptcy, and bondholders
Taj Mahal debt restructuring: The record · The record
documented
Trump controlled and promoted the debtor casino and negotiated the restructuring.
Financing, analyst warning, contractors, bankruptcy, and bondholders
Taj Mahal debt restructuring: The record · The record
documented
Bondholders exchanged debt for ownership while the casino continued operating.
Financing, analyst warning, contractors, bankruptcy, and bondholders
Taj Mahal debt restructuring: Affected group · Affected group