Trump Aghast at Forbes’ Claim that He is a Hair’s Breadth from Poverty

In an article published last week in Forbes, based on interviews with over 80 sources, it was claimed that Donald Trump’s net worth is less than half of what the real estate mogul has been claiming.

The magazine, which places Trump in the 121st place on their list of the 400 richest people in America, claims that they “devoted unprecedented resources to valuing a single fortune” in their estimate of Trump’s wealth. Their final estimate: a measly $4.5 billion. This flies in the face of Trump’s (apparently overly optimistic) own claim that his fortune is “in excess of TEN BILLION DOLLARS.” (The screaming caps were found in the original statement published in July.)

At the head of the Forbes 400 is one of the world’s richest people: Microsoft owner and founder Bill Gates, said to have a net worth way beyond Trump’s at $76 billion. Trump feels slighted that he is tied for his position at 121 with Wal-Mart heiress Ann Walton Kroenke and businesswoman Elizabeth Holmes. Maybe he is also uncomfortable sharing that spot with two women?  Trump says its all about his image:

“I’m running for president,” Trump told the magazine in an interview that it says lasted almost two hours. “I’m worth much more than you have me down [for]. I don’t look good, to be honest. I mean, I look better if I’m worth $10 billion than if I’m worth $4 billion.”

Trump has his own proof that his fortune is not a pittance, stating that another “respected magazine that’s coming out” put his fortune at $11.5 billion.

Trump is not beyond accusing Forbes of defamation of character, and throwing the insults right back in their lying, cheating faces:

“You’re gonna look bad,” he told Forbes. “And look, all I can say is Forbes is a bankrupt magazine, doesn’t know what they’re talking about. That’s all I’m gonna say. ‘Cause it’s embarrassing to me.”