In The Atlantic article, Mr. Graham notes that Trump is
supposedly worth around $9 billion—according to Trump. According to a Slate article authored by
Jordan Weissmann, about $3.3 billion of that $9 billion is supposed to be the
value of the “Trump brand.” Wow! That is quite a valuation. I wonder what it was based on. Mr. Weissmann notes that some hotels will
pay Trump to use the Trump name on the hotel—Trump actually doesn’t own the hotel
itself. Forbes
puts the brand closer to around $125 million.
That is still quite a high valuation.
And, it is not entirely clear how Forbes arrived at that number. (The branding deals with Serta, Macy's and hotels?)
In recent weeks, Trump has maintained his lead as the
Republican front runner. Notably, The New
York Times, in Why Donald Trump Won’t Fold: Polls and People Speak, recently
examined polling data and concluded:
A review of public
polling, extensive interviews with a host of his supporters in two states and a
new private survey that tracks voting records all point to the conclusion that
Mr. Trump has built a broad, demographically and ideologically diverse
coalition, constructed around personality, not substance, that bridges demographic
and political divides. In doing so, he has effectively insulated himself from
the consequences of startling statements that might instantly doom rival
candidates.
In poll after poll
of Republicans, Mr. Trump leads among women, despite having used terms like
“fat pigs” and “disgusting animals” to denigrate some of them. He leads among
evangelical Christians, despite saying he had never had a reason to ask God for
forgiveness. He leads among moderates and college-educated voters, despite a
populist and anti-immigrant message thought to resonate most with conservatives
and less-affluent voters. He leads among the most frequent, likely voters, even
though his appeal is greatest among those with little history of voting. . . .
<
His support is not
tethered to a single issue or sentiment: immigration, economic anxiety or an
anti-establishment mood. Those factors may have created conditions for his
candidacy to thrive, but his personality, celebrity and boldness, not merely
his populism and policy stances, have let him take advantage of them.
Tellingly, when
asked to explain support for Mr. Trump in their own words, voters of varying
backgrounds used much the same language, calling him “ballsy” and saying they
admired that he “tells it like it is” and relished how he “isn’t politically
correct.”
Trumpism, the data
and interviews suggest, is an attitude, not an ideology.
I am sure that some of his comments have not helped the value of his brand
as I believe corporate sponsors will likely continue to run from him. I am not even sure what his brand will stand
for after this is all over—not just opulence for sure. However, his general popularity is growing in
certain circles—how many of those folks will play golf on Trump’s courses? For more on the “math” behind Trump’s
valuation of himself, see Forbes here.
No comments:
Post a Comment