New York attorney general slams Donald Trump's 'phony' and 'shameless' Trump University
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New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman slammed Donald Trump and his eponymous Trump University on Tuesday, Politico reported.
His remarks followed a court decision by Judge Gonzalo Curiel ordering Trump University internal documents, which include marketing "playbooks," be unsealed by Thursday, June 2.
Calling Curiel a "hater," Trump has argued the judge's Mexican heritage makes him biased and that he should be removed from the case.
Schneiderman hit back at this point, according to Politico:
Every judge has said these are valid fraud claims. You [Trump] defrauded people out of money. They're entitled to their day in court. He [Trump] keeps saying it's an easy case to win but he keeps losing. All he's doing is delaying.
A majority of the documents, which total around 1,000 pages, are expected to be released as early as Tuesday, May 31.
When explaining the disclosure, Curiel pointed to a previous case that states courts must consider if a public official benefits from confidentiality and if the documents involve issues of public interest. He also noted that Politico published one of the "playbooks" from 2010 in its entirety in March.
Notably, the book instructed Trump University employees to rank students by their liquid assets to target those who could afford more coursework.
Schneiderman didn't mince words on the issue, as Politico reported.
If you look at the facts of this case, this shows someone who was absolutely shameless in his willingness to lie to people, to say whatever it took to induce them into his phony seminars. It was shameless. It was heartless. It's important information to get out there.
Spencer Platt/Getty Images
Trump remains enmeshed in multiple lawsuits filed by former students of Trump University and faces a third fraud suit from Schneiderman, which likely won't go to trial until after the November election. The suits accuse Trump of defrauding thousands of students with worthless classes on real estate and investing.
For example, one suit alleges that Trump University engaged in “brainwashing schemes, outright fraud, grand larceny, identity theft, unsolicited taking of personal credit and trickery into [sic] opening credit cards.”
Trump and his lawyers, however, have continually defended the for-profit university, citing stellar student reviews. Some students, however, may have been pressured into writing them, according to The New York Times.
The suit being overseen by Curiel has a trial date set for November 28.