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- [00:00]
A
Scams C, Robbery and Frauds. Scams C, Robbery and fraud. Scam Goddess. What's poppin, Congregation? It's your girl, Scam Goddess, AKA Lacey Mosley. And we are back for another installment of Scam Go Goddess Pandemic Edition. Like I always say, guys, we're not going to talk about that because you're living it. Right. Anyway, I'm super excited today. I always say I'm excited. I know I get on y' all nerves. Say it with me. I'm super excited. Thank you for our guest. Miss this woman. She's so talented. She's so funny. She has a great podcast called Bad With Money. She also has another amazing podcast called Just Between Us. She's a New York Times best selling author. Honey. Ms. Gabby Dunn. Hi. And what. Hi. What book is the best selling book? Because I also want to say that because the hoes need to read right now.
- [01:03]
B
Yeah, well, it's called I Hate Everyone but yout. It's the first book that I wrote with my co host on Just Between Us, Allison Raskin. So that was our first book. Yeah, it came out in, gosh, 2017. And then a sequel came out last year called Please Send Help. And it's like just. It's ya. So it's very easy, breezy read. But yeah, that. That's the one that got on the New York Times bestseller list. It was very exciting.
- [01:30]
A
Okay. Okay. I mean, that's a huge accomplishment. I'll have to pick that up because, you know, I met your partner. I met Alison.
- [01:35]
B
Yeah.
- [01:36]
A
On the YouTube space doing like some kind of short TV show.
- [01:42]
B
Yeah, she. Yeah, she knew you already because you were a guest on our show and she had. I was like, I love Scam Goddess. And. And Allison was like, I know her. I was like, oh, okay. Well, excuse me.
- [01:55]
A
Yes, thank you. I know y' all too now, honey. I know some authors, honey. A bitch is cultured. Okay, we gonna have to have a party with wine and cheese when we can leave so I can parade you around all my friends.
- [02:10]
B
She wrote a book.
- [02:11]
A
Yes, I remember she wrote a book. Okay. And she know me. And I know her. Okay? So I also too, in turn wrote a book. You see how that works? Oh, my God. Oh, man. Wait, what's your relationship with scams, Gabby? Do you have a relationship with scams? Have you ever been scammed? Do you like them? Do you hate them? Do you feel like you're a scammer or.
- [02:32]
B
No, I like to do a good scam, but they're like small scams. So I wrote a book also called. I wrote another book. I wrote a book called. I wrote a book called Bad with Money, which was based on my podcast. Podcast. And I had a whole chapter about scams I used to pull when I was in my early 20s in New York. And because New York seems to be kind of the city of scams because you can just, like, do whatever you want there. It's very strange. But so, like, I. I wrote this whole chapter, and then they had me cut it because, like, a lot of it was, I guess, bad. Or they were like, you. We can't have you advocate for, like, go so it. But they're like small scams. Like, basically it was like, if you need an umbrella, don't ever buy an umbrella. Just walk into a hotel, be like, I'm so sorry I was here yesterday and I left my umbrella. And then they'll just. Or like a Starbucks or something, and they'll just give you an umbrella.
- [03:26]
A
Yeah.
- [03:27]
B
Or like, if you. If you don't ever buy a phone charger, like, go to a hotel and be like, I'm so sorry. I, like, worked here. Yes. Like, you know, I was working on my laptop here yesterday, and I left my charger, like, can I look in your lost and found?
- [03:40]
A
Boom.
- [03:40]
B
A charger. Like, you're never. There's certain things you don't ever have to spend money on. And. And so. But then I wrote that in the book, and they were like, we can't advocate for lying and scheming. And I was like, but that's. That's the truth about how you save money. Like, it's been interesting doing a show about money where you kind of. I'm. I'm very honest on the show, and I'm. I'm happy about that because, like, a lot of times it'll be like, the way that you make money is you do this, you do that. It's like, very, like, here's the. If anybody could do it, you just pull yourself up by your bootstraps and you get this thing or whatever. But to be honest, a lot of it is, like, scamming. Like, a lot of it is. Is stuff like that or. Or, like, I don't know. It's. It's. It's been interesting to. It's been interesting to find the balance between giving people practical advice and also sharing the truth of what people do to make money. Because sometimes if you're scamming, like, I talk about, like, a little bit about, like, shoplifting in the book and, like, don't shoplift from, like, a Mom and Pop. But, like, if it's a Walmart or like a. You know what I mean? Like, there's a real loose sort of like, if there. If it's like a chain, like a big chain, that's unethical, like, scam away, you know?
- [05:09]
A
Yeah. We just call that Robin Hood. And also, when you go and get an umbrella and you get, like, a charger from a hotel, which I have done the charger thing at a hotel before. I lost my charger for real. So I needed to find somebody else's charger.
- [05:22]
B
Right.
- [05:23]
A
And it's recycling. They have drawers of these things. Exactly. They're not gonna do anything with them. That is recycling, in my opinion. Your editors was hating, but they're probably also right because, you know.
- [05:35]
B
Yeah.
- [05:36]
A
You don't want to admit to crimes in a book.
- [05:38]
B
No, but is it a crime? It's like, is it. I mean, shoplifting. Yes, but, like, is it a crime? I don't know. It's also like the hotel. Yeah, it's not a crime, but it's also. No, but I also did get scammed because I had. Do you know those apps that are like. What is it called? There's like, those apps that you can, like, sell things on and it's like. Or you trade things.
- [06:06]
A
Yeah, like Poshmark and shit like that, right?
- [06:09]
B
No, it's ones where you meet up in person. It's like.
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A
Like Craigslist. It's like, murderous.
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B
It's like Craigslist. Yeah, it's like Craigslist, but. But not Craigslist.
- [06:23]
A
Is it seedier or better than Craigslist? It's like when you go, like, on a 1 to 10, like, how much murder are you expecting?
- [06:30]
B
Right. So it's supposed to be, like, better than Craigslist, but. But it's actually. What is it called? It's called, like. I want to say it's called, like, left behind. That's not accurate. Hold on, hold on.
- [06:47]
A
That sound like that book where all the people's clothes evaporated.
- [06:50]
B
Yeah.
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A
I always wanted that to happen.
- [06:52]
B
Selling Raptured. You want to get Raptured?
- [06:57]
A
Hell, yeah, I want to get Raptured. I'm not trying to be the last bitch on earth. I'm trying to. I get naked right here and now to get Raptured.
- [07:03]
B
Yeah. Ugh. I'm not gonna. I'm. It's like I'm not gonna be able to find it, but basically it's okay, people. I know. I'm sorry. There's A few of them. But basically, I went on one to sell a bracelet. And I got to the. We met up in public in a parking lot, and I got to the. To the place, and he was holding a baby. An infant, the guy. And he was like. And I was like, he. I was like, oh, okay, here's the. He was like, here's my baby, or whatever. And then I was like, okay, here's the bracelet. And then he was like, great, I'll go get the money. And then he just got in his car with the baby and left. So he.
- [07:42]
A
What the. So was the baby there to distract you? Yes.
- [07:45]
B
He used his baby as a. Yeah, he used his baby to be like, see, I'm safe. I'm a good person, or whatever. And then you just.
- [07:55]
A
Most babies are unemployed. So I'm glad that that baby got a profession, because it's time babies be out here just lounging around, not doing shit, not contributing to the household. So this baby is contributing financially, and I appreciate it.
- [08:08]
B
You talk about on the show, like, people using things to seem trustworthy, and, like, having a kid with you is, like, a huge one. Like. And I. Now I realize, like, it doesn't mean anything if someone has a baby. Bad people have babies all the time. But it is like, wow, that baby is, like, being used as an accessory in crimes. And the baby is like a baby.
- [08:32]
A
I love it. And then I love little pickpocketers. I love, like, a little. Just like, English pickpocket, toddler. Oh.
- [08:39]
B
It made me feel okay about. It was like, whatever. The bracelet was like, whatever. And I was like, you know what? Sometimes I'm like, jokes on me. Like, fool me once. Like, okay. And I was like, you know what? That's a freebie. Because I assume. I try to assume when someone is scamming the way that, like, when I was scamming, it's because I was desperate. So, like, I try to assume that, like, oh, oh, that you know what? That baby needed food. Like, that person did that because the baby needed food or something.
- [09:11]
A
Like, baby just got some similac. Big jobs. Yeah.
- [09:14]
B
Or like, even I have, like, weird empathy. Like, even when some, like, a postmate takes your food, I'm like, you know what? They probably needed it.
- [09:21]
A
I'm the same way, too. With postmates. It sucks sometimes because I've had them steal my food, and then the. The food place or wherever I ordered it from is closed, so now I can't even get that. And I had my mouth all ready for it, and so I'm like, that hurts. It really does. It's happened to me several times. But you're right, I try to be more empathetic. I don't want to go out like Lizzo, tweeting bitches photos and shit like, this hoe stole my food.
- [09:43]
B
But then, okay, so then I did. So then I got robbed. When I. When that happened, I called the police. It took like two hours for them to get back to me. And then they were like, took a description of the guy. And then they were like, what happened? And I was like, what? Well, you know, he was holding a baby, I gave him the bracelet, he went to his car to get money, and they just got in the car and drove off or whatever. And they were basically like, oh, yeah, that sucks. And let me just say, and I'm sure I don't have to tell you this, the anytime I've called the police for like something happening, I have never been met with anything other than, yeah, that sucks. Like, I've never.
- [10:18]
A
Yeah, the police are here to harm people. They're not really here to help.
- [10:21]
B
I. I'm not even. It's not even harming, obviously to me because I'm white. But it was just like. It's just every time I've called for something, it's been met with a shrug. Like, I got robbed. I got mugged in Paris and I went to the police and they were like, what do you want us to do? And I was like, I don't know, look into the mugging.
- [10:39]
A
Like, yeah, you gotta be Kim Kardashian to get them to look into your.
- [10:44]
B
So the amount of like. So I was like, yeah, this guy's like, apparently running a scam. Like, here's his profile on the website. Like, here's his scam thing, you know, like, he's clearly like, probably got multiple profiles. I'm sure he'll be able to find other people to like, char, you know, whatever. And they were just like, yeah, it seems like a lot of work.
- [11:02]
A
So that's happened to me. I had somebody do a hit and run on my car and I don't know why I reported it to. I did the non emergency 911 because I want them to show up because I am black and when we call the police, they are here to harm us. You know, they do wellness checks. You won't be well after the check, right? So. So I was like, non emergency police, please do not show up where I am. And I told them what happened and they were like, damn, sis. You know, that really sucks. Yeah, you could file a report or whatever, but we'd never go find a guy. I was like, okay. Like it was just for show. Yeah, yeah, we'll get into what's hot. And fraud. So this is actually something that's popped up during quarantine, but I guess it's been around for a while. It's the reemergence of a scam known as the Circle Game, or Blessing Circle or Mandala Game, just in case you're seeing a different version of one of these things. But all three of those are the same scam. So police in California are warning the public that the re emergence of an online scam called the Circle Game, which asks people to pay an entry fee in order to play. So basically what it does is you pay $100. Oh. It's also been called the Loon Circle. They have so many names for this shit. Anything with Circle don't get involved unless it's on Netflix, because clearly it's some bullshit afoot. So according to the police, most recent versions of the scheme promise $800 return on $100 investment. In order for the first eight people to be paid, 64 new people have to buy in. In order for those 64 people to be paid, 512 people have to buy in, so on and so forth. So this is just like an og.
- [12:40]
B
Yeah, I was about to say that's a pyramid scheme. Everyone knows what that is, right?
- [12:44]
A
Yes, but it's called Loom Circle girl. We got new names for it. Like Loom sounds like goop. That sounds like a wonderful white lady brand to be a part of. You know what I mean? It's just a pussy candle. And in a loom circle, that sounds
- [12:59]
B
what you like, knit on. So it is kind of like, it seems like safe and comforting.
- [13:07]
A
Right? This is like a middle aged white woman activity, like looming. You know what I mean? So like, they're like, yes, I'm getting involved. I'm telling my friends. So, guys, eventually, once enough people are recruited and enough money is sent to the game's founding member, the system collapses and people lose money, according to the police department. So you'll lose money. And also, this activity is technically illegal.
- [13:31]
B
But why? Why would someone pay the entry fee?
- [13:35]
A
Because the whole point is like, okay, you pay $100, and then once you round up enough people in your loom circle, you know, candle lit, whatever the fuck you call it, the Mandala, you get paid by who? So. But in order by the people who are buying in. So let's say we start with eight people, right? Then those eight people have to each recruit eight more people. Because if you get 64 people who have paid the hundred dollars, all eight people who started the scam get paid their money. And then if those 64 people who have now been roped into the scam want to get their coins as well, they have to go out and recruit eight people each and get 512 people to donate $100. And then they get their coins. But there's one person who starts it, and they get most of. And then they disappear.
- [14:23]
B
But so, you know, you're actively scamming your friends.
- [14:27]
A
Well, you think you're getting them in on the loom circle girl. You're trying to get them. Like, you're trying to get them relaxed.
- [14:33]
B
People. Money has to come from somewhere. Like, do people know that? Like, it has to. It's. It's not a renewable resource. It has to come from someone. So eventually, at the end of the thing, there's a nobody.
- [14:50]
A
Exactly. But here's the thing, though. Like, with GoFundMe and crowdfunding, a lot of people don't understand the difference between crowdfunding and a pyramid scheme. So you might think, like, oh, this is like little Gofundme. Like, we all put in a dollar, but then I get to take home $500 because everybody gave me $1. Like, you think of it more that way than you think of it. Like a pyramid scheme.
- [15:09]
B
I am not good at math, so I wouldn't even be able to be scammed by this because the person would. I feel like it would be like, the person would be explaining this, like, to me what I need to do. And I'd be like, but. But I don't. Like, I. I wouldn't be able to visualize the numbers, and they'd give up. Like, they'd be like, look, we tried to talk her into a scam, but she is too stupid. Like, we can't. Like, she is.
- [15:36]
A
They kick you out of the circle. She was like, so, who do I give? Who am I giving 100 to? And then. And then they do I rob somebody. Because, like, Gabby, we're actually going to take you out of the circle. I'm so sorry, Gabby, but we're removing you from.
- [15:50]
B
Yeah, you've actually asked way too many questions. And. Because, like, money. Because then, like, where does the money come from? Am I dumb, Lacy? What am I not understanding? Am I stupid?
- [16:04]
A
Is. No, you're not. It's just like, when you crowdfund on Gofundme, like, everybody Gives, like.
- [16:10]
B
But I don't understand. I don't expect to get that money back when I give it to GoFundMe.
- [16:16]
A
Right? But in this situation, it's like, if you had a GoFundMe going on, and then you were like, okay, I'm gonna give a hundred dollars. They're gonna give me $800 as soon as I get eight of my friends to give $100. That's how I get my money back. And then my friends are now involved in the scheme, and they go get eight more friends so that they can get $800. So technically, all you had to invest was a hundred dollars. But then you go get eight of, you know, your home working Facebook moms. You are the neighborhood watch group, and you get $100 from them, and then that.
- [16:47]
B
So you have to just, like, not care about your friends.
- [16:51]
A
Yes, exactly.
- [16:52]
B
Okay, I late.
- [16:55]
A
You have to ride.
- [16:56]
B
Okay. So Lacey can see me. The people watching cannot. My face. I can see myself, too. My face this entire time has been like that meme of the old woman thinking about math. Like, my face this whole time has been like, squinting all the numbers on the screen.
- [17:10]
A
I was like, where do these numbers come from?
- [17:12]
B
This is a rough one for me. This is where you. Everyone who follows me finds out I'm dumb.
- [17:19]
A
No, look, it's better to not understand and participate in these sorts of things because you never get your money back, because all the money when you first start recruiting people is going to the person who started the scam. And then eventually they just.
- [17:33]
B
Why is this happening right now during quarantine? Because people are just home.
- [17:37]
A
Yeah, people are home. And, like, easy money is a thing. And we talk about the Dustbow meeting. Talk about, like, okay, if it seems too good to be true, it probably is. If you over here calling your cousins, trying to get them to donate $100 to the mandala project. Like, girl, no. Yeah, don't do it. And they got cute little photos, too. They got, like, a little. It's like a little map where they put the names on it in the blessing circle, and it kind of looks like a diamond. See if I can.
- [18:02]
B
Oh, no. When there's artwork, that's where it's convincing. Oh, no.
- [18:08]
A
This is the little art. And so they put the names on the little parts of the diamond so it'd be like, gabby Lacey, scammer.
- [18:15]
B
So it's like. It's like paying to be in, like, a top eight. Like a MySpace top eight.
- [18:21]
A
Yes. Like a MySpace topic. Yes.
- [18:23]
B
But with money that you don't get that seems bad. You know, I've been, I've been doing these giveaways where, like, people have been giving me money and I've been doing these giveaways on. On Twitter for like, you know, people that need to pay bills. And some people are really like trying, like, they'll just request, like, they'll get my cash app from it and then. Or whatever. And then I'll just get like a hundred requests on cash app just being like. And I think they think that I'll just be like, oh, you're right, I forgot I need to pay random person I've never met $100 for like, for groceries. Or they'll be like, you know, you owe me money for this or whatever. Like, they think I'm just going to. But you know what? If you don't shoot your shot, even if it makes no sense, if you don't shoot your shot, I guess you miss 100% of the shots you don't take, right?
- [19:14]
A
And especially because you're on Twitter, you have a good amount of followers and you are donating. And I saw Yashar doing that. A few other people, like, I'm sure there are people like, maybe they just. Rich. Rich. Let me just go over here. Yeah.
- [19:24]
B
Invoice. Yeah. Or like, right. I mean, it's not all my own money, but also like. Or there's like people. I've noticed certain countries, like, they'll be like the same person over and over again with different accounts. And it'll be like, it's almost always the Philippines. And I'm like, oh, I see, Interesting. And they write the same exact thing. And I'm like, this is such a quarantine era scam that people can pull. Like, I see people responding the exact same thing over and over again. And people just make accounts just to follow these giveaways or whatever. And I'm like, they don't actually need it. They're just like, this is my time.
- [19:59]
A
Right. Or maybe they do. Look, scamming profession. Skin is a job. And I'm sure the scammers have also been laid off. I'm sure scammers are underemployed right now and they can't file for unemployment. What they supposed to tell the government? Their previous job was robbery. I need to fill file for robbery. I have not been able to break into anybody's homes because they are currently present at them and that's really damaging the robbery industry.
- [20:24]
B
Oh, my God.
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A
Oh, my God.
- [20:26]
B
That's so true.
- [20:27]
A
So we need a Stimulus package for the robbers. Look, without the robbers, we don't have adt. You know, how do you sell home security if nobody's trying to burglarize? They are necessary in the ecosystem. So shout out to the robbers out there. I know it's a tough times. These are tough times for robbers. Oh, my God. We're gonna take a quick break. We'll be right back.
- [20:50]
B
Scams hunt.
- [20:55]
A
Hey guys, we are back and it is time for my favorite segment of this podcast, Historic Hoodwinks. And guys, I'm just gonna go ahead and tell you today I was talking to Gabby about this before we started recording. I didn't want to do this story and you guys have reached out to me about this story a lot about this nasty bitch. And I hate this motherfucker so much and I'm so sorry, but we are gonna do it. This is like not even all of the scams this raggedy ass hoe has run on us. And if you don't know by now who I'm talking about, I'm talking about 45 Donald J. Raggedy bitch ass orange ass Trump. If you're a Trump supporter, you might want to go ahead and turn this off right now. But I'd be shocked if you was just listening to a black bitch talk all the time if you support Trump. Cuz very black. Again, a reminder.
- [21:40]
B
One thing. Can I say one thing I very much adore about this show is that like, nobody is forced to listen to it and yet, like, you'll get you like, when you talk about the things that are like, this show's very black. It's like nobody's making you like, yes, that is why. That is the, the person who is the host of the show. Like, I don't know, like, they're like, like, you're like, oh my God, the premise, love it. Could we replace the literal creator of like, it makes no sense. So I also like, if you're like, I, I love Trump, I love Trump. But I also love hearing about scams. Oh no, there's not any other place I could possibly hear about scams.
- [22:25]
A
Well, I think a lot of that happened because like, original like kind of awards and write ups that we got really likened us to the crime. Like the true crime, which we are. We're true con. And so true crime heads are like a different breed. They're like, you know, all in it. A lot of them are like, bro, white dudes. And so they turn my shit on and they're like, what? Who is this bitch and why Is she out of her mouth?
- [22:45]
B
They also like. It's also like, we get emails to JBU that are like, why don't you ever have, like, people from the other side on? And we're like, oh, because we don't want to.
- [22:57]
A
Right?
- [22:58]
B
Because we don't like them.
- [23:00]
A
I don't need.
- [23:00]
B
So anyway, if you like Trump, I guess skip this one. One episode. Listen to the other episodes of Lacey show.
- [23:07]
A
Yeah, you can listen to all 30, whatever other episodes and just skip this one. Because, guys, we're talking about Trump. Just so you guys know, because we don't like to steal from our writers. A lot of this story comes from Vanity Fair and it's written by Bess Levin. November 7, 2019. So shout out to Best. Shout out to. I think that's a queen. I can't tell by the name. Best could be any gender.
- [23:29]
B
Shout out to a monarch.
- [23:31]
A
So, right, so we're talking about specifically Donald Trump's charity scam. So this is so many. He had the fake.
- [23:40]
B
The ultimate scammer. The ultimate scammer.
- [23:43]
A
Yes, he's. He scammed his way to the White House and yes, he's terrible, but God, can you imagine going from just being Adderall, popping cocaine sniffing a reality TV show host who lies about his money to President of the United States.
- [24:01]
B
He didn't even want to be president. He was running to boost ratings for the Apprentice. Like, what the fuck? He almost scammed himself whilst scamming he.
- [24:10]
A
Like, I remember his inauguration speech where he genuinely looked shocked. He was like, what the fuck am I doing here? What is happening?
- [24:19]
B
He played everyone and played himself.
- [24:22]
A
So Donald Trump's charity scam. Back in June 2018, the New York Attorney General's office sued the President, all three of his adult children and Donald J. Trump foundation, accusing the charity of functioning as a little more than a checkbook to serve Trump's business and political interests and said he was engaging in a shocking pattern of illegality.
- [24:43]
B
Shocking to who?
- [24:44]
A
I think that is an ex. Yeah, no one. No one at this point. I mean, he came out and said he would shoot somebody on Fifth Avenue and he would still be supported. And I'm. He really might shoot somebody on Fifth Avenue. That's the only thing he has.
- [24:57]
B
But he, he basically has. I mean, there's nothing, there's nothing he could do that would turn the people that are die hard against him. Like, he's right, he could. He. He's done things that I would say are worse than that. And like, still, I mean, even, like, even all I mean, everything he's done has been a scam. Like, even. Even not just the charity scam, but, like, all of it has been scamming. I mean, since, like, the 80s and 90s. Like, people knew.
- [25:30]
A
Knew that.
- [25:31]
B
And he's had many things fall through that people, like, it was, like, common knowledge.
- [25:36]
A
Yeah. It's crazy. And I mean, all of the. One thing that I will say about Trump is he keeps it in the family. Everybody in his family is doing crime. It's always time for crime at the Trump.
- [25:46]
B
He fails is the thing. Like, women that have pulled scams are, like, destroyed forever. And then, like, men have pulled scams, and they just live to scam another day. So that's the whole story.
- [26:02]
A
There's definitely an inherent privilege and, like, and this is a random side note, but Ivanka had a shoe line back in the day, and this is before Trump was, like, running for office and shit. And I remember I used to try them shoes on. Them shoes was narrow as fucking cheap as hell. And I just want to say that that has nothing to do with anything we're talking about, but the shoe business went out of business, and I'm glad. Who are those shoes for, if y' all can. Jessica Simpson.
- [26:26]
B
I was literally about to say Jessica Simpson shoe line is incredible.
- [26:32]
A
It is. And she's got. They're comfortable, they're nice and high. You can run from the cops in them. You know, she's really putting out the footwear, the apparel.
- [26:39]
B
I was literally about to say, like, I. Like, before you said it, I was about to be like, you know whose shoe line is great? Jessica Simpson.
- [26:46]
A
It was a shock to everyone because everybody was like, oh, chicken of the sea. Jessica is stupid. And she was like, joke's on you, girls, because I'm putting out the footwear,
- [26:52]
B
and it is popping.
- [26:56]
A
So. The allegations in the suit also included a claim that $10,000 was spent on a portrait of the president later found on display at one of his Florida hotels. The reason Trump's charity bought it was because nobody else wanted it. His lawyer said in court, oh, my God. So you commissioned a photo of yourself, like, Trump, you know, you not. We don't want to look at you. You're not a looker. Why are you getting paintings done? And then you bought your own painting and then put it on display.
- [27:27]
B
The problems just run so deep. Like, even the thing that's going on now where he's like, I take hydro cloxine. Like, I take it. Like, I, I. You know, when he's, like, promoting The COVID cure. And then you find out that he has stakes in the company that makes it. Like, it's always like, you could any avenue you go down with him, you will find something that is a conflict of interest or something that he's doing in order to, like, make more money. That's all it is. I mean, you talk about, like, people talk about this all the time, but, like, you're not supposed to have any conflict of interest as the president. Like, Jimmy Carter had a peanut farm and he sold it because he didn't want to look like he was going to make any profit off of being president. Like, oh, people might buy more peanuts because he's the president. It would be unethical. So he sold it. Think about how fucking quaint that is in comparison to what's going on now, where Trump is literally just like, promoting his own hotels and resorts as president. Like, it is shocking.
- [28:26]
A
He does club appearances at the Mar a Lago. He does club appearances as president. Can you imagine having a wedding party? And they're like, hey, the President's here. Papa bottle. Why is the president, though? He got presidential stuff to be doing. Why is he at the Mar A Lago? And he's done so several appearances. It, like, makes people want to rent the hotel for their wedding because they want the President to show up so they can take photos. It's crazy. I was like, how am I getting a Free Before 11 flyer? And the President is on. What they talking about? Ladies, ladies getting free President Donald Trump going to be in the vip. I want some Hennessy with the president.
- [29:04]
B
He's turned the whole thing into a money making endeavor. And he was doing so what you're talking about, I mean, he was doing that before he was president. And charity, and running a charity is a great quote, unquote way to like, launder money, essentially.
- [29:20]
A
Absolutely. Because it's always just donations. Where do they come from? We've had so many scams that were had a charity that was just washing everything clean. These purchases are bizarre, though. He had $100,000 that he used to settle a legal dispute with the city of Palm beach, which Trump resolved by contributing the amount to the Fisher Foundation. So he didn't pay his off to get rid of a case. $258,000 was used to settle a lawsuit against Trump and his businesses, including $158,000 to the Martin Greenberg foundation, whose founder sued Trump National Golf after it failed to pay him a promise of million dollars for scoring a hole in one in a charity golf tournament.
- [29:58]
B
Oh my God.
- [30:00]
A
Oh my God. He was like, my bad. We didn't give you the million. We'll give you 158,000. 5,000 was used to advertise Trump hotels because that's charity. Eric Trump used his foundation money rather than his own to pay for a sixteen hundred dollar copper wine still and antique bottle washer. What the fuck is that?
- [30:21]
B
Here's the thing. You lose. You get to be a certain level of rich, or you've started out as this level of rich, you've always been this level of rich, and you lose any perspective on like what the average person needs to survive and live, and you lose everything. Any like idea of what things are worth or what money. Like, I like when I see celebrities houses and they're clearly a one person. They're not married, they don't have kids, whatever. And the house has like eight bedrooms. Why? Why? But you convince yourself, this is what I need. And so it's people like that where like he's like, what is a copper still cost $100,000 seems right. Here you go. Like, they just lose any concept of or never had any concept of, like, what things should cost, what things do cost, and like what. Where money should go and why.
- [31:10]
A
Right. It's like that curb your enthusiasm joke where they're like, do you know development.
- [31:14]
B
It's arrested. Yeah. Michael, $10. Like it is so. Yeah. And like they just don't see it. They just don't see it as the way that like someone who knows where every dollar they spend goes, they just don't see it. They're like, we'll use it to pay people off. We'll use it for this, we'll use it for that. Like, they just don't have any concept of, of how much money is worth.
- [31:44]
A
Right. But why are you out here pulling out your charity checkbook for this? Like, yeah, I need a sixteen hundred dollar copper cup. Hold on, let me get my.
- [31:50]
B
Because of taxes.
- [31:51]
A
Why are you.
- [31:51]
B
Because of taxes? Because we've given a lot of tax exempt status and a lot of our. What you're talking about, the scam that you're talking about, Lacy, is promoted by our government even before Trump. As always, like, the way that the government works is giving tax exempt status or bailouts to wealthy people or corporations all the time. It's not like a glitch, it's a feature.
- [32:16]
A
Right? Yeah. And it's also like, oh, don't worry guys, because when we give these taxes breaks, they're going to make new jobs and then those New jobs are going to be your employment, and then you'll be trickling down. You'll get all the. Like, we all got our mouths open. Sitting in the desert waiting for the fucking trickle down. That shit is not coming. It's not like it's not coming. Especially now. We've all seen all the holes and cracks in the system that maybe some people have the privilege to ignore. But now it's like everyone gets to see how bad the government has been for so fucking long. Government is a scam.
- [32:46]
B
The government is a scam. Wow.
- [32:50]
A
Like, I was talking about this before. I was like, if I give, if I pay a parking ticket, bitch, I want to see a pothole with my name on it. I want to know where exactly where the money went. I want to see a stop sign. It's like, sponsored by Lacey Mosley and her no driving ass. Like, I want to know where it's going.
- [33:06]
B
Yes, yes. And that used to be. That used to be the case. Like, not that that specifically, but, like, it wasn't so twisted where, like, if you gave your money to a bank, that bank was in your town. Like, you. You knew, you were like, hey, Charlie the banker, you live next door to me. My money's in your bank right now. The government has made it so that it's all, like, federalized and, like, and like, chains and so you have no idea where your money is ever.
- [33:33]
A
Amorphous. Yes. That's why I keep my money out of my mattress. I'm just kidding.
- [33:38]
B
Like, I'm gonna bury it in my backyard, because I don't know, right?
- [33:41]
A
I mean, at this point. So Eric Trump had a foundation, too, and his foundation pretty much did what it told its donors it would do. Send its money to St. Jude. Until a huge board turnover. 4 of the 7 original board members who were personal friends of Eric left.
- [33:56]
B
Hmm.
- [33:57]
A
Curious. They were replaced by 14 new board members, the majority of whom owned all or much of their livelihoods to the Trump Organization. So he got rid of his friends, and then he got people who were his cronies. His friends probably. Like, you know, this stuff sounds illegal. Eric, he was like, okay, I'll have to let y' all go.
- [34:13]
B
Here's also. Here's also. Also an assumption that I think middle class people have. Lower class people have. That is untrue. Which is that the people that are on boards for charities are rich people. Like, it's not like, oh, my God, they're so busy going to, like, the charity gala, or they're like, they're really Busy, like, raising money for these things. Like, a lot of times, like, you will raise a lot of money for a charity and then that money will like, yes, some of it go to the charity, but a lot of it goes to pay the exorbitant salaries of the board members of the people who, like, are in charge of the charity. Like, it is. It is this, like, thing that I think makes people feel good, but it is really, if you're giving to a charity, you really need to, like, look up and take into account, like, what the breakdown of your donation actually is,
- [35:01]
A
where your money's going, how much of it is going. Because, I mean, there's so many popular charities like American Red Cross and places like that where they live. There's some shady shit going on. The bigger you get, like, it's a little more sketch. So he hires these 14 new board members who were very much dedicated to the Trump Organization. Six of them were full time employees, including Trump's lawyer, Michael Cohen. For that name, Eric was on the board. His wife Lara, and nine of the 17 Eric Trump board members had vested interest in money making side of Trump Empire. Duh. The Trump. Eric Trump's foundation wrote a $25,000 check to the George Rodrigue foundation of the Art. The same year, George Rodrigue, who had said that his famous Blue Dog painting sometimes sold for about $25,000, created a portrait of Donald Trump for the auction at Eric's event. So this is the portrait of Donald Trump that they said that they couldn't.
- [35:55]
B
Oh, no. Are you gonna show it to me?
- [35:59]
A
I. Let me see if we.
- [36:00]
B
Do we have it.
- [36:02]
A
I mean, I can't. I can't imagine it being good. Chelsea, let's see if we can search that.
- [36:07]
B
Okay.
- [36:08]
A
Okay.
- [36:11]
B
Oh, the dog.
- [36:13]
A
So that's the dog.
- [36:14]
B
That's cute.
- [36:14]
A
Yeah. But do we have a picture of it actually?
- [36:18]
B
Oh, no. Oh, my God. I'm so glad you got this in real time. No, no, no, no, no.
- [36:25]
A
Who the. Who the drew this? Oh, my God. Y' all Google Donald Trump Blue Dog? Is that what you put in George Rodrigue?
- [36:36]
B
Oh, my God. Okay, so what are we looking at here?
- [36:39]
A
So put in George Rodriguez Trump. Guys, when you're at home, okay, and look at this.
- [36:45]
B
The dog looks like it has been forcibly fed LSD and then told about mortality. Like, it looks so scared.
- [36:55]
A
Why is Donald Trump blue? What is. What is this flag? I child this the ugliest shit I done ever seen. It's really bad. Of course, this didn't sell.
- [37:05]
B
It's really bad.
- [37:07]
A
Wow.
- [37:08]
B
Well, okay, so here's the thing. So I don't think it even had to be good because the point of it was to launder money, I assume.
- [37:16]
A
Right. But they could have at least made it convincing that it was, like, cute art that people wanted to spend money on. That is the ugliest shit I've ever seen in my life.
- [37:24]
B
But if that was a picture, if that was that same picture, but it was of Beyonce, I would. I would be into it.
- [37:32]
A
Right? I mean, well, Beyonce and anything I'm into. The portrait ended up hanging over the couch in Eric Trump's house, where he was photographed sitting beneath it. Years later, Eric was asked about it on a phone call interviewing Forbes the next day. So wait a minute. This is a different painting. So this is a painting that he commissioned that they sold for charity. This isn't even the painting that Donald Trump paid $10,000 for that hangs in his Florida hotels. This is a different painting. They're just using money to launder. Like they're laundering through art, which we all know happens. That's a very easy way to launder money. Wow. So Eric was asked about it in a phone call interview with Forbes. The next day, after being told Forbes had several other questions, he sent a paragraph long text message which read, I love that there's people who can just text Forbes, because also Kanye does this. He be texting Forbes. That's impressive. So he says, I was reflecting on it last night. This is Eric Trump. I was reflecting on it last night, and I have to say I was really disappointed when you said the story would be fair. Seems like there is a motive against either myself or my family. And if that's the case, I would simply rather disengage. So they had questions about this painting and this money, and he was like, you know, he immediately goes to playing the victim.
- [38:42]
B
Wow. Yeah. If I had a painting of my father in my living room and then someone was like, can we ask you some more questions about this painting? And I was like, shut down the whole interview. That's weird. That's so weird.
- [38:54]
A
What's up with that painting? You know, I'm not gonna be attacked. I'm not gonna have my family attacked. Take the. Cut the cameras asap. Take these micas off. He's like, I just asked about a painting. He's like, flipping the table over. He's like, get the fuck out of that.
- [39:08]
B
So this is the thing is that, like, there's something shady about almost every move. And I think that if you've grown up around that. And this is like, Trump grew up wealthy, and like, the kids grew up wealthy. And so, like, if you've grown up around that, the things that you. You've just normalized it. Like, you just think that that's how things are done. That's how business is done. That's how. That's how you make more. That's. You just make more money. That's how you do it. Like, they. I don't think there's, like, I think they are just so normalized in crime that they don't really understand that what they're doing doesn't help it. Like, there's this thing with rich people of like, we deserve to be rich. We deserve to keep getting more rich. We. It's called the Prosperity Gospel. And I talk about this in my book in relation to Trump. It's the idea that if you are rich, you are morally superior. You are. Must have earned it in some way. God has blessed you because you are. You must be smarter than everyone. There's. There's no. If you're poor, you're stupid, and there's a reason you're poor, and you must be, like, morally inferior. And if you're a good person and like, the reason that you're rich is because, like, so this is why economically disadvantaged people like Trump and voted for Trump, not just because they see him as aspirational, but because they. The ultimate scam is this idea that he is wealthy for a reason, and people who are wealthy deserve it. Even with Jeff Bezos becoming a trillionaire, you see people, like, who literally probably don't even make minimum wage, arguing in the comments on Twitter, being like, I don't understand why we're mad at him for being a trillionaire. He came up with a great idea and he's rewarded for it. And that's the American dream, and they have no concept.
- [40:51]
A
I tweeted about that and had people in my comments saying the same stuff, like, well, why don't you learn how to code and make your own Amazon literal direct quote and shit. And I was like, out of all you. I didn't want to be rude, but I was like, out of all the motherfuckers in this comment section, I'm the most likely to become a billionaire. And I'm telling you, this is bullshit. They like this. What are you talking about? It's really sad that we've tricked people because I think that people don't understand that, like, Jeff Bezos didn't. He's not on his way to becoming a Trillionaire. Because he was selling mixtapes out of the trunk of his fucking car, bitch. He ain't get that shit like Master P on the streets. You know, when you get a certain amount of money, you get involved in government, you get involved in lobbying, you get involved in making sure that our tax. Our IRS division doesn't have the funds is underfunded so that they cannot audit a billionaire physically. They can't. Who do they audit? The middle class? Like, you're paying a higher percentage of taxes than these raggedy bitches, and you trying to be one of them. You be a billionaire and.
- [41:46]
B
And he historically is terrible to Amazon employees. Like, Amazon employees suffer and are not paid and are. And are taken advantage of. So, like, this idea that, like. And I think people. Because, like, so Trump does all these scams, and I think people really see it, and they're not saying it this way because they believe themselves to be good, but in their minds, they're like, well, if I was that rich and that smart, that's. I would do that too. Like, there. It's kind of like a. Like a. A thing where they're like, they. They see it as, like, well, if I. I would be committing these crimes. Like, getting away with the crime of it all is like a. Like a prize.
- [42:25]
A
And to extend. I understand that because on the show, like, obviously, we love scammers. We love to see how people like, but, you know, cheat the system. However, this is just. It's detrimental in so many ways, and I think people don't understand that. We're not saying, like, oh, you can't make a lot of money, and then you want to take it back. Because we want socialism. No, bitch, we just want you to pay your fair share. Like, all these billionaires would still be billionaires if they pay.
- [42:46]
B
There's a difference between the people you talk about who have, quote, unquote, scammed or figured out ways to, like, get to the top or make themselves better, and people who come from wealthy families and greedily want more. If you're a scammer who came from nothing and you're just trying to, like, feed your baby who you're using in crimes, Godspeed. But, like, if you. If you are already a billionaire and you're disenfranchising people in order to become a trillionaire, like, that's not scamming. That's just, like, evil.
- [43:18]
A
Yeah, it's a sickness. Yeah, it's hoarding. Like, Jeff Bezos is basically that episode of hoarding where you go in and the lady got 47, 9,000 newspapers. And she got lots of little, little drinkers and she keeps all the bottle caps off her soda waters and stuff. That's Jay's.
- [43:33]
B
There's no reason for it.
- [43:35]
A
He has a thing.
- [43:36]
B
Right? So this is also like Trump. Trump could have just continued on scamming. Why did he need to be president? Why become president?
- [43:47]
A
It's just his lifelong obsession with Barack Obama, which is so crazy because I've never seen another sitting president talk about the last president as much as Donald Trump does. It's crazy. Like he always talking about this bitch. I'm like, he lives rent free in your brain, huh? He's be having dreams about Obama, sweaty on the beach, running through the waves and he wakes up in a cold sweat like Trump, what is this? Do you want to be with this man? We all do. I understand. But back to this particular scam. So they. The largest donation in the 30 something year history of these Trump charities was $264,000 to the Central Park Conservancy, which basically went to restoring a fountain outside the Plaza Hotel with Trump owned at the time. So his biggest charitable donation was to a fountain in front of his own hotel that he owned at the time. The smallest donation was $7, which was a foundation gift to the Boy Scouts, which conveniently happened to be the amount required to enroll a boy in the Scouts the year that his son, Donald Trump Jr. Was 11. So he enrolled his son in the Scouts and used charity money and only gave the Scouts seven.
- [45:04]
B
So that is indicative of the scam, the bare minimum. And then your child benefits. It's almost like it is, it's just generational wealth and privilege. Like, it's just the, the whole thing of. Also, I'm sure he gets to put on his taxes, like donated to the Boy Scouts. Like, I'm sure that's part of it too. A lot of it is just, it's all very for show. Like a lot of the scamming is like when you talk about like scamming for the arts and stuff. Like, you can't really argue with that. Right? Like, if someone's like, I donate to the arts, you're not going to like, look deeper into that. You're like, you're like, ah, yes, the arts. Love, I love arts. You know, like, nobody.
- [45:48]
A
I want them to keep doing art paintings.
- [45:51]
B
Sure. I love to look at them. Like, you don't really dance? Ballet.
- [45:57]
A
Ballet. Chris. Mr. Copeland. Absolutely.
- [46:00]
B
So like, yeah, there's nothing to argue. So if you're like, I donated to Boy Scouts. Everyone's like, oh, like, there's nothing to argue with there. So.
- [46:08]
A
Well, this is how they got caught, which, I mean, did they ever really get caught. He's still at president. The Trump foundation agreed to dissolve in December in the face of an investigation. So basically, they were being faced with they were gonna be audited. They were like, shit is shiesty. Shit is up. And they were like, you know what? Actually, we gonna Cancel Our organization.
- [46:26]
B
December 2019.
- [46:30]
A
Yeah, last December.
- [46:31]
B
That's so recently.
- [46:33]
A
Yes, right. They were like, pull the plug. Pull the plug. Unplug everything, move, shred everything. Running.
- [46:41]
B
They're running the building with like cardboard boxes, with paper. Just shredding stuff, just running around.
- [46:47]
A
Quick, quick, quick. Setting things like that scene from Fun and Jane.
- [46:51]
B
Setting things on fire.
- [46:52]
A
Set on fire in the office. Now we just cleaning up. You know, fire actually is a much faster way to get rid of bad stall than the.
- [47:01]
B
What? This is normal? Oh, my God.
- [47:04]
A
No, we recycling. So we got to break up the computer. Oh, my God.
- [47:09]
B
The amount that these people believe themselves to be the victims when they are like, here's the thing, right? So your show is about scams. And it's interesting to, like, put these people as scammers because I think they're like, sometimes the scammers, like, are the victims of the structure of the structure of the world. But these people had everything at their disposal and still chose to scam. That's what's so fucked up.
- [47:37]
A
Cause sometimes it's not about. And we talk about this like people get as far as they need to in a scam and they continue running scams. And so then it becomes to me, like, okay, you like the high. Like you want to get over on people. And it's not just about surviving. And so those people always get caught. I mean, not always. Obviously, these people have failed quite upwards. This case was prompted by David Fahrenhal's report in the Washington Post about the foundation which won the Pulitzer Prize in 2017. So that's the guy who wrote about this one of Pulitzer. Last December, the Attorney General's office announced that Trump would shut down the charity. And now he's being forced by a judge to cough up $2 million to a group of charities to settle the suit. The President tweeted, I am the only person I know, perhaps the only person I'm the only person I know, perhaps the only person in history who can give a major money to a charity, 19 million, charge no expense. And be attacked by the political hacks of the new York State. No wonder we're all leaving every penny of this $19 million raised by the Trump foundation with the hundreds of great charitable organizations, almost no expenses. Okay, obviously lying. He said that Letitia James, the Attorney General, is deliberately mischaracterizing the settlement for political purposes. And then he said that she should investigate, you guessed it, the Clinton Foundation.
- [48:56]
B
Okay, so, so. So did it get resolved? Did it get resolved in any way?
- [49:05]
A
Yeah, he. Yeah, he had to liquidate the charity and donate all the assets that they had that they were obviously using for personal use. He had to donate them to other legitimate charities.
- [49:18]
B
Okay.
- [49:18]
A
So no jail time, no investigation. They basically were just like, oh, no, we actually done with charity. We canceled our charity last week. We canceled the subscription on our charity so y' all can have the money. Like, they knew they were about to get caught up.
- [49:32]
B
It's just hard because charity is so broad. So it's like, what was their foundation purporting to do? Like, what did it think it was? What was it? What. What was. What was it helping?
- [49:44]
A
I don't. I don't actually know. I don't know if they had a mission statement. It feels like it was like, we are a charity who gives to other charities for charity, and also we do charitying, and that's the problem. We. We are a non profit.
- [50:01]
B
That is.
- [50:01]
A
Hold on, let's see if there's a mission statement.
- [50:03]
B
Because that's the problem is that a lot of these, like, you. You just say charity, like, we're doing this for charity. And it's like, what charity?
- [50:11]
A
So he. He said his initial mission was to distribute proceeds from his book the Art of the Deal to charitable cause.
- [50:19]
B
What?
- [50:20]
A
That's your mission statement?
- [50:22]
B
Did that happen?
- [50:23]
A
That's a very Trump mission statement. No, that did not happen at all. But I'm also like, how. That's not a mission statement for a charity.
- [50:32]
B
Yeah.
- [50:32]
A
What isn't supposed to be about helping people, uplifting a certain community.
- [50:36]
B
Yeah. What people is it. Is it going towards or what organization? What is it going towards? I wish that it just. I wish that it just said Trump Foundation. What are. What are you. It's like, we want to buy copper stills for all the legacy inheriting young men of the world. At least that I would be like, that's honest.
- [50:56]
A
Right. If he was just like, I'm giving my book money to the poors.
- [50:59]
B
Like, I mean, cash app them. Cash app the pores, then cash app them directly.
- [51:04]
A
Right? Yeah. We're tired of this. I also feel that way, especially right now, like, I've done it to some charities. I've also just donated personally to people who were raising money for themselves. And I am kind of at the point where I'm like, where, when I get to this charity, like, who eating off of this? Like, who got the money after that? Because I never know. And I'm very curious also, like, guys, if you're out there and someone's crowdfunding to raise money for charity, don't donate to the crowd fund, donate directly to the charity. Because a lot of times people crowdfund for charity so that they can write off a huge amount of other people's money. And it's a scam.
- [51:39]
B
It's a very interesting time because, because people are able to like, ask for help for themselves and you don't really have to go through an organization, but sometimes you, you do want to because you feel helpless and you don't know what to do. And it is someone's job to take care of that. But you just have to be sure that it is specific enough and that you know the percentage, what percentage goes where and what it's being used for. Because there's been a lot of things outed that are like, oh, it was actually for this person's salary.
- [52:11]
A
Right. Which in case is like, this is not directly going to help anybody. It's just going to line your pockets, which I understand you have to, look, you have to pay people who work for nonprofits. You have to pay anybody who touches money. You cannot not pay your treasurer in any organization because they will start stealing. So you have to pay these people. But I am also like, I'm like, damn, how much? There should definitely be. I don't know. It's interesting because some people work really, really hard in charities and who's to say you can't have a nice life working in a nonprofit sector? I don't think that that's fair.
- [52:46]
B
Totally. I just think if it's coming from, I just think if it's coming from someone like Trump or someone like even the Clinton foundation or someone like, you know, a wealthy person's charity, I would just look into that. A little bit harsher than you would look into like a non profit that doesn't have like a figurehead. Does that make sense?
- [53:10]
A
Right? Or the nonprofit down the street from your house. You know what I mean? Like you've got a women's center or whatever. I mean like, yeah, look into everything. But if it is like Trump's charity for good deeds and giving, like,
- [53:24]
B
I just, I just Think that a lot of times it is a convenient way to look like a good person, to put money into a place where it's not gonna get taxed. And, like, it's really amoral and really unfortunate. Some of the scams you have on this show, I'm like, whatever, live your. Live your dreams. But this is one that I think is, like, just an example of rich people believing so deeply that they have earned being rich, that they have lost touch with what will actually help people and just want to continue to dogpile their money. And that sucks.
- [53:59]
A
Right? And that's also because, like, once you're in a certain stage in life, we always adjust to our surroundings, and then you may forget about things. Like when you go to. When I go to the grocery store, I'm not really looking at the price of anything that I put in my cart. I'm just like, oh, do I want these chips? I put them in. Do I want this toothpaste? I put it in. But there was a certain point in my life, especially in college, probably, where I was pinching my little, you know, allowance from my parents, which is still privileged, and I was like, damn, $5 for this me. You know what I mean? I was looking at those things. So there comes a point when you're this nasty, rich, nasty honey, where you, you know, you and your friends are all complaining about this, you know, the price of jet fuel for your pj. Like, you're no longer in the real world anymore. And that's what's happened in this whole quarantine with celebrities, which I found very funny, is like, celebrities always kind of pretend like they're regular people, but they're also very rich, so they can navigate both spaces. It's like, oh, I'm rich. And people know who I am, but also the people I get on my Instagram and I talk to the girls face to face, you know, I give them the real. And so they're getting on here, trying to, like. Like, Sam Smith got on Instagram and cry. First of all, y', all, if you're out there listening, please don't ever cry and open your front facing camera. Like, nobody needs to. Just like, it's okay. It's okay. It's okay. If you start talking on live or something and you get emotional, I understand that happens. It's okay if you to cry, but it is never okay to be crying and then be like, you know what I should do now? Open my camera up and get on Instagram. What are you doing? And Sam Smith did that. And we're like, how do you want us to feel, bro? You cried in a mansion. You crying in a parasite house. What? How?
- [55:41]
B
I mean, there's a lot. There's a lot of. There. There has been a lot of interesting stuff in that regard, because I think we're not. We see celebrities out and about, but we don't ever really see their houses. Like, we never see where they live. Usually, like, a lot of times they post from events or they post from out, you know, at a restaurant or something like that.
- [56:03]
A
Paparazzi. Yeah, I got coffee. Yeah.
- [56:06]
B
But we never really spend so much time looking at the interiors of their houses. Like, certain celebrities. I've been laughing really hard because people are like, oh, my God, they don't own any art. Like, their walls are bare. Like, are they okay? Like, what's going on? Like, you're really getting to see, you know, like. Or like there was some influencer that posted a picture and was like, my house is a mess, and the kitchen was immaculate. And it's like, you're really getting, like, this insight into. Into people with followings that you, like, normally wouldn't get access to. And. And it's. It's kind of showing you, like, who retains perspective and who is just like, I. I don't. I don't. You know, like, Ellen DeGeneres being like, I'm in prison. And it's like, honey, honey, no, you're not.
- [56:57]
A
Right? And look, everybody has made that joke at some point, but some of us just know better than to say it on national television. Girl, you ain't in nobody's jail.
- [57:05]
B
I have never. I have never been like, I'm in prison because they wouldn't allow dogs in prison. And I have a dog here,
- [57:13]
A
right? I've said I was in Martha Stewart jail. Cause I imagine her jail was pretty nice. I was like, this seems about right. Like, I can crochet. You know, I got a decent amount of space. This is probably what Michael was working with.
- [57:24]
B
Like, it's just very. It's been. I think even celebrities that promote charity, it's kind of this interesting thing where I think people think, well, if they have a charity, they're a good person. Like, and it's not. And that's the. That's the. The thing that was. I mean, I just think we gave Trump so much leeway with all of this stuff, and we gave him so much credit for things that he didn't deserve credit for, that it led to him being president. Like, this whole thing. Like, he's just really Good at. He's really good at business. And that's why it's like, no.
- [57:57]
A
I was like, he's had several bankruptcies. He's not good at business. He's a criminal. And they're like, but he made money off those bankruptcies. I was like, yes, but those destroyed people's lives. People lost their 401ks. People were unemployed. Like, he. Okay, but he made money. Like, it's just. It's one of those things of, like, until you're personally affected, you just look at the numbers so you're not thinking about. It's not real until you know someone or you are a part of it. Which is crazy how the lack of empathy that we've indoctrinated Americans.
- [58:22]
B
I mean, even, like, we talk about the Big Short, right? I love the movie the Big Short, but it's like a fun romp through, like, the housing crisis. And, like, we look at all these people and we're like, oh, my God. Like, they were so smart and they did all these things and they. Whatever. But, like, real people lost their homes and their retirements. But even in media, and I'm sure, you know, as an actress, like, even all of our media sort of makes heroes out of people who can. Who can take advantage. And it's like, very.
- [58:53]
A
Right.
- [58:54]
B
Yeah. It's not. It's. It's even when they're criticized in films or TVs, they're still. Or TV shows, they're still lionized. And, yes, I did just watch the Social Network again.
- [59:08]
A
Well, guys, we're gonna take a quick break, and we'll be right back with the last segment, robbery and fraud. All right, guys. And we're back. Oh, this is the saddest time, because this is, like, the last thing before I have to let Gabby go. And, yeah, this is a long one, guys. Enjoy us bitching about Donald Trump as if that's not what everybody does every single day. Sorry. And this is also. I'm going to leave with. Scammer of the Week is also going to just. We're going to stay on theme here. After one tweet to President Trump, this man got $69 million from New York State for ventilators.
- [59:46]
B
So, no, no, ma'. Am.
- [59:48]
A
I. Yes. I hate the power of Twitter that Twitter has now because Twitter has become so strong. It's absolutely ridiculous.
- [59:56]
B
I'm ready. I'm ready. What happened?
- [59:58]
A
So, on March 27, as emergency rooms in New York across the country obviously began filling up, Donald Trump posted on Twitter, urging Ford and General Motors to start making ventilators now in caps. You know how he does. One of the thousand replies that the tweet attracted struck an equally urgent tone. We can supply ICU ventilators invasive and non invasive. We have someone call me urgent. This person who wrote this tweet was Yaron Oren Pines. And Yaron is an electrical engineer in the Silicon Valley, a specialist in mobile technology. He currently just has 75 followers on Twitter. So shout out to y' all who ain't got a lot of followers. You could just tweet to the president and maybe get $69 million. Like, keep tweeting. So he apparently has no experience in government contracting or medical devices, but three days later, New York State paid Orin Pines 69.1. What?
- [60:57]
B
Lacey, what? The payment was New York State paid him.
- [61:01]
A
Why? What do you. Cause he said on Twitter, I got them ventilators. I got them later. But they didn't. They didn't check.
- [61:10]
B
They didn't do a background check on him. They didn't.
- [61:13]
A
We in a pandemic, Gabby. Okay? He said he got the ventilators. He opened his coat like Bruhman, and he was like, yo, I. I got them ventilators. I got them ventilators. He popped his truck. He said, hey, New York State.
- [61:24]
B
This is like when I went to see the Roots at Brooklyn bowl on New year's Eve in 2011, and I tried to buy Molly, and it wasn't Molly. Like, that's what that. But like, instead, I'm New York State.
- [61:36]
A
It was Sarah, it was Haley. It wasn't Molly.
- [61:39]
B
Instead of it being me at 24 in a. In a. At a concert on New Year's Eve. It's New York State and $69 million New York State.
- [61:49]
A
So shout out to you cuomosexuals, because he kept this under wraps. I didn't hear about this. So the payment was for 1450 ventilators. So 1,450 ventilators at an astonishing 47. $656 per ventilator. least triple the standard retail price of at least.
- [62:09]
B
Show me the ventilator. Show them to me.
- [62:13]
A
Price checking. They're not price checking. They didn't shop around. They were just like, nah, let's throw a cool 69 mil at a man off Twitter. So obviously, not a single ventilator ever arrived. A state official, speaking of the background, like, also like, bro, where did they send this $69 million to Wells Fargo? You was like, yeah, I'm at TD Bank, y' all. Send me the 69 million to t cash app.
- [62:38]
B
Lacey. They cash apped it. Straight up. Cash app.
- [62:42]
A
Venmo me $69 million.
- [62:45]
B
PayPal me $69 million before taxes. Oh, my God.
- [62:51]
A
Right? Actually, Venmo said that's over the limit that we can send, so we're gonna do it. You got cash out. We're gonna cash up. You 69 mil.
- [63:00]
B
God help.
- [63:01]
A
What? So obviously the ventilator.
- [63:04]
B
They didn't ask to see a video or a picture of the ventilators?
- [63:08]
A
Nah, bro, they just. He said, I got them ventilators. And they said Craigslist are. Are shrewder than this than New York State. A state official speaking on the background. Speaking on background, because he was not authorized to publicly discuss the terms of the deal, said that New York entered into the contract with Oren Pines at the direct recommendation of the White House Coronavirus Task Force. So, AKA Donald Trump was like, hey, I did a tweet, and there's a guy who says he's got ventilators.
- [63:35]
B
And then they just had to listen to him.
- [63:37]
A
It seems that they got it on the good authority of the White House. You know how good that authority is? We're all injecting disinfectant. So nearly a month later, New York has terminated the contract, and the state is now trying to recover all the money it paid the Silicon Valley electrical engineer. Officials refused to say how much the state has been able to claw back. They said, we're in discussions on a few remaining issues.
- [64:00]
B
If I'm him, I change my name, Hop skip over to New Zealand and never talk to anyone again. Duh.
- [64:07]
A
Ever. I'm going to put all the money in the Cayman Islands. You will never see me set foot on American soil ever again. They reached out by phone to Oren Pines, and he said, neither me nor my company is providing any comment on this. And then he hung up. What company?
- [64:22]
B
Orin Oren Pine llc, which he registered on Zoom. Legal Zoom.
- [64:31]
A
So the. I know this is crazy. The money he received on March 30 was the largest single payment made by the New York Department of Health under an executive order issued by Governor Andrew Cuomo last month that aimed to streamline the procurement process that critical medical equipment could reach the hospital as quickly as possible. So he's, like, cleaning up because it's obviously Lacy.
- [64:51]
B
Yeah. This is a 10 on your desk. Despo meter people are despo because we're out of 10.
- [64:57]
A
We're out of 10. We're despo. And then he was like, great, I got them Ventilators on Twitter, bruh. I' ma start commenting under Donald Trump's tweets. Whatever he asking for, he's like, I got them masks. Please tell Cuomo to run me 69.
- [65:15]
B
I just solved the Flint water crisis with it.
- [65:20]
A
Right? Oh, my God. So states were forced to fend for themselves to purchase life saving supplies to combat this global pandemic. He added that the state has since been able to meet most of its needs, reevaluating contracts and canceling others. So they had a contract with him. They're still trying to get the money back.
- [65:42]
B
This is horrible.
- [65:44]
A
And between March 19 and April 27, the health department cut 77 checks for a million or more for medical supplies, for a total nearing like $735 million. That's what state records show that they've spent. So what's 69 million to a guy who got ventilators?
- [65:58]
B
This is the problem. But also just ask to see a photo. Like, ask to see a video. Why? Why did you.
- [66:07]
A
Donald Trump comments on Twitter like pigs.
- [66:10]
B
Yeah, Pixar didn't happen. Like, why? Why, why, Lacy? I guess my question for this entire episode is why?
- [66:19]
A
Why not is the answer.
- [66:22]
B
We are in the darkest timeline. Why not?
- [66:25]
A
Right? Why not scam? So I'm very fascinated to see if he's gonna get. If they're gonna get their money back from him, because basically the deal was for, you know, around 5,700 ventilators, actually. Well, according to a report by the Albany Times Union, which is a different news outlet than reported before on this. And they said the contract with Oren Pine stands out even among the motley array of vendors that struck deals with New York over the past few months. Because, like, New York paid for N95 masks. They were paying roughly $12amask, when those masks usually would go for like 125 and that kind of bulk purchasing. So everybody's kind of been jacking up
- [67:03]
B
the price problem with capitalism too. And in America, we've made health a business. So the fact that people's idea would be like, oh, my God, people need masks. Let's jack up the price is so coldly capitalist. To be like, now's the time to benefit is like, I. Oh, it makes me so mad.
- [67:23]
A
Right. And we normally have laws against this. So it's shocking to me that New York has been just paying these people. Like when the stuff happened, when the levies broke, you couldn't raise the price on generators. That was illegal, stuff like that. So it's crazy that they're Just like, no, we'll pay it. Okay, guy from Twitter. 69 millimeter.
- [67:41]
B
10 on the despo meter.
- [67:42]
A
Right? Because it's such a condensed city, like, everyone's living on top of each other. There's no place worse to have a pandemic than New York City, but, yeah. So, Oren Pines, I don't approve of this scam. This is terrible, what you're doing. It is, however, hilarious that you made a comment on the person's tweet and
- [68:00]
B
then got, this is Trump's fault. This is Trump's fault for sure.
- [68:04]
A
Absolutely. Who else is? This is crazy. Like, imagine your president getting on Twitter, like, hey, who got the mad.
- [68:11]
B
Well, he just, like, retweeted someone the other day who then was like, I'm. I'm not pro Trump, and then just went on to tweet a bunch of anti Trump shit, even though Trump had just retweeted that person. And it was like, my. I can't like why he's retweeted stuff
- [68:27]
A
that's making fun of him. He's retweeting memes and videos from Independence Day with his face dubbed on top. This shit is crazy. It's crazy.
- [68:36]
B
Please give me and Lacey $69 million, the funniest amount of money you could possibly give someone
- [68:45]
A
sex. You know?
- [68:46]
B
Oh, wow.
- [68:48]
A
I appreciate. I appreciate this. The charlatan. But. All right, guys, we've reached the end. And Gabby, where. Where do you want to be found? That's what we always ask people.
- [68:58]
B
I'm on Instagram abiroad a Beatles reference that is very dumb and I didn't understand branding. So I have Gabby Road on Instagram and Gabby Dunn on Twitter. It's G A B Y for both. And then I have. I have four books that I've written. We talked about two of them, and then Bad with money. And then I also wrote a comic book which came out last year called Bury the Lead, which you can also. You can get wherever you get regular books, but it's a graphic novel, so that's the most recent one.
- [69:30]
A
Yes. Come on, book. Come on, author. I told y', all, she's out here writing the books for the girls. I love it. Pick those books up, guys. They won't cost you millions, but if
- [69:41]
B
you want to cash app me that will accept it.
- [69:44]
A
Yeah, if you want to cash up US $69 million, we will take it. As always, guys, if you want to snitch on your friends and family, scamgodesspodmail.com just make sure your scams retired. You could find us at Scamgodesspod on all platforms. And you can. You can find me at D I V A L A C I Divalacy on all platforms. If you want to look at my nonsense. All right, congregation, keep skiing.