In a Newsweek report, Donald Trump is being accused of deleting emails and disposing of records amid lawsuits against him and his companies over the past several decades.
During his presidential campaign, Donald Trump has harshly criticized Hillary Clinton for deleting emails he asserts were relevant to the FBI investigation into her use of a private server.
However, a Newsweek profile released on Monday claims the businessman has engaged in the same behavior he is accusing Clinton of; the report begins by stating, “Over the course of decades, Donald Trump’s companies have systematically destroyed or hidden thousands of emails, digital records and paper documents demanded in official proceedings, often in defiance of court orders.”
Writer Kurt Eichenwald notes that one of the first recorded uses of this strategy occurred in 1973 when the GOP candidate and his father were accused of discriminating against apartment applicants who were African American.
After refusing to answer requests about the claim, Trump eventually appeared under subpoena and allegedly admitted that his companies had been destroying documents regardless of their relevance to the case, reports Newsweek.
USA Today had previously pointed out the businessman’s use of a similar tactic in 2006, noting that his casino group had been ordered to release past emails to a court, but the Trump Organization reportedly responded that those dated between 1996 to 2001 had already been cleared out; the judge was said to be dubious that no messages remained, but no formal charges were pursued.
Newsweek calls this “...perhaps the worst legal case involving Trump and his companies hiding and destroying emails and other records.”
Trump has yet to publicly comment on these allegations.
