CNN's John Berman immediately fact-checked a claim by President Donald Trump about his business dealings.
The 80-year-old president was asked Wednesday morning, as he prepared to board a nearly $400 million luxury jet given to him by Qatar, about recent financial disclosures showing that he had raked in $2.2 billion since returning to office, and Trump insisted he had little to do with his own investments.
"You know, I don't get involved in my personal, we have funds that run my money," Trump told reporters on the tarmac. "Well, I've made a lot of money before I became president, and they invest my money in. I don't talk to them; I never, I do not even speak to them. So I have many people – I don't know what they call it, closed accounts or something. You put your money in, and that said, I don't talk to them. They're big institutions, and they run it."
"But, yeah, I've had a great career in business, I've had a great career," he added. "I don't know if I've had a better career in politics or business, but I had a great career in business and, you know, you saw the cash and you report the different things, and what they do is we gave it, I think it's called a blind account, but they basically they take it, and I purposely, I never speak to any of the people that run the money. But they're big institutions, and they invest in whatever they invest."
The White House has repeatedly emphasized that Trump has placed his businesses in a blind trust managed by his sons, and the "CNN News Central" host pointed out that both of them – Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump – were traveling to North Dakota with their father.
"The president was also asked about reports that he's made an enormous amount of money since being in office from new financial disclosures," Berman said. "The president said he doesn't know anything about it; it's all handled by private people. But he said it with his two sons standing right behind him, two people who were actually involved with that money. He said, yeah, I don't ever talk to the people who do anything with this money. The two sons right behind him, they were right there."
Berman later wondered whether the Trump sons would ever be called to testify about their business dealings if Democrats win back a congressional majority.
"The president said he hasn't talked to the people who handle his money," Berman said. "Again, his two sons were standing directly behind him when he said that."
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