Donald Trump is playing his followers for 'chumps' with his latest scams -- here's how

In a column for the Daily Beast, longtime political observer Margaret Carlson observed how Donald Trump has turned his post-presidency into one long grift as he milks taxpayers for the money to support his self-promoting lifestyle and runs scams on the "chumps" who support him to put more money in his pocket.

In a brutal assessment of how Trump has conducted himself since he was defeated by now-President Joe Biden last November, Carlson notes that the former president has left behind millions in unpaid bills for his rallies -- as he starts another round of them -- while at the same time creating new avenues to suck up donations from his rabid base.

Writing, "Trump's ex-presidency is likely to prove as expensive to taxpayers and his gullible donors as his presidency. His goal is to live his best life as the center of attention but without dipping into principal, or principle. Only chumps do that," Carlson added that the ex-president is once again up to his old tricks when it comes to sticking cities where he makes appearances with the bill after he leaves.

"At the February episode of CPAC in Orlando, he didn't pretend to give a speech but simply held a rally in their state-of-the-art hall that cost him nothing. CPAC managed everything and travel came out of his $100,000 yearly allowance. Officially, his Secret Service doesn't provide protection at rallies but they inevitably do, although often more manpower is required to keep order given the threat of violence that follows Trump wherever he goes. The extra security costs hundreds of thousands of dollars. If history is any guide, Trump won't pay a cent of it," she wrote before adding, "When he does have to pony up, he cheaps out. For a stand-alone rally in Ohio in June designed to punish highly regarded Republican Rep. Anthony Gonzales for voting to impeach him, he went downmarket. No one in the annals of the Lorain Fairgrounds had ever gone so low as to lease only the parking lot, and not the grounds. A committee formed to deal with the unusual request negotiated a price so potentially embarrassing to Trump he insisted on an NDA. MAGA fans might stop underwriting his life if they realize he's got more important things to do with their donations than book a place with seats."

According to the columnist, Trump's announcement that he is launching a lawsuit against social media platforms for banning him under the guise of standing up for the First Amendment is yet another scam to get his followers to pay for publicity stunt -- with the lawsuit guaranteed to fail.

"Trump's a geyser of money, shooting out appeals inspired by one outrage or another, the latest suing for being banned from social media. This week's action against Facebook and others is like his 60-plus court challenges to the election with a goal of raising money, not setting precedent. In the initial filing, he misinterpreted the First Amendment and filed in friendly Florida rather than as required in federal court in California. Still it's the perfect Trump combo: a brief and a press conference and, presto, another legal defense fund," she wrote.

Getting to the heart of the matter, Carlson accused, "For the whole of his life, Trump has counted on other people doing the right thing—like paying their taxes—so there's no need for him to do the same. Shared sacrifice is for suckers. His agents will take a bullet for him, even if he's gouging the government. Cities will cover peacekeeping services when he invades a place for his own gratification knowing he'll ignore their invoices. As with the vaccine, his followers can skip it to make a political statement because others have gotten theirs. He's a chronic free-rider."

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