Donald Trump's recent — and demonstrably false — tale of a near-helicopter crash was apparently not the first time Trump had made such a claim involving a helicopter.

During his news conference on Thursday, Trump shared a story about a near-helicopter crash with former California Assembly Speaker Willie Brown. Brown denied the story and laughed.

Buzzfeed in 2015 found another incident in which Trump made false statements about a helicopter crash.

Andrew Kaczynski and Mark Arce spoke with three Trump biographers who shed light on the tale.

Three Trump Organization executives were flying back to Atlantic City instead of driving. According to Trump, he decided not to go with them at the last minute. An aide told him the helicopter was down, but Trump assumed it meant it couldn't fly due to repairs. It wasn't until a reporter called him that he realized five people were killed in the crash.

"I can get some publicity out of this," Trump allegedly said, according to BuzzFeed.

A wire story spread that Trump was supposed to have been on the flight but wasn't.

BuzzFeed cited Dan Klores, a Trump spokesperson, who told the Philadelphia Inquirer: "He really doesn't want to talk about it, but he was going to go to Atlantic City, and he did change his mind."

All of it was a lie, the biographers said.

Harry Hurt's biography Lost Tycoon recalls Trump in his office with other staffers when a reporter called.

"Mr. Trump, I know this must be horrible for you," the book quotes a reporter calling about the crash. "I know it must be terrible for you to lose your three top casino executives all in the same day. I'm so sorry about what happened...I guess the only thing that could have been worse is if you had been on the helicopter with them."

The book describes Trump turning to his staff with the mute button on and saying, "You're going to hate me for this. But I just can't resist. I can get some publicity out of this."

That's when he reportedly made up the story that he was supposed to be on the flight.

"The next morning Donald's 'revelation' will appear in a caption on the front page of the New York Daily News beneath photographs of the three dead men: 'Trump decided not to go at the last minute," Hurt writes.

Six people confirmed the tale Trump spun was a lie.

Wayne Barrett's book The Deals And The Downfall cites Trump as being "personally traumatized by the disaster — saying publicly that it 'cheapened life' for him, showing him just how fragile everything was."

The BuzzFeed reporters cited Trump's own vice president of entertainment and sport Bernie Dillion disputing the incident.

Holden said that he called Brown to compare notes. Brown told him he had never been in a helicopter with Trump.

“I said, ‘Willie, you know what? That’s me!’” Holden said. “And I told him, “You’re a short Black guy and I’m a tall Black guy — but we all look alike, right?”

Holden gave his own height as 6-foot-1. “Willie has to be about 5-foot-6. Maybe 5-foot-5. He comes up to about my shoulders. And he’s bald. And I’m not bald.”

Brown, he said, “just laughed and laughed.”

YankeeTarheel wrote: Wed Aug 14, 2024 11:24 pm I surprised that he hasn't claimed he was awarded a super-duper-special Medal of Honor for Valor fighting STIs and STDs in himself!

TrueTexan wrote: Thu Aug 15, 2024 9:46 am

YankeeTarheel wrote: Wed Aug 14, 2024 11:24 pm I surprised that he hasn't claimed he was awarded a super-duper-special Medal of Honor for Valor fighting STIs and STDs in himself!

Bet he has lost the battle. Tertiary Syphilis There is a wide range of neurological problems that tertiary syphilis leads to, including:

Dementia (also called general paresis): People become forgetful and undergo personality changes.
Meningitis and encephalitis: Inflammation of the brain and the lining around the brain may occur.
Seizures: These are sudden, uncontrollable electrical disturbances in the brain.
Hallucinations: This is sensing things that are not real.
Tabes dorsalis (also called locomotor ataxia): This is a disease of a specific part of the spinal cord that makes it difficult for people to sense the ground with their feet. This leads to falling and the appearance of difficulty walking.

https://www.verywellhealth.com/advanced ... is-5323756

That's what took out another well known Florida resident criminal, Al Capone.