There’s no need to name names here . . . you know who I mean. He’s the stable genius who, in a previous incarnation, described himself as the “number one developer in New York.”

Well, Mr. No. 1 Developer: Let’s start with the construction permits — or the lack thereof.

It all began with an orgasmic dream about a ballroom that would rival Versailles Palace in size, but on the tacky side. To find room for it, an entire wing of an existing historic building — the People’s House — had to be eliminated. And so it was summarily razed and hauled away . . . without the legally required demolition, construction and environmental tests and permits, or (in this special case because it is a very special building) the required permission from the folks in the federal government charged with the care and maintenance of the People’s House.

So what part of “tests” and “permits” — or, for that matter, “historic preservation” — did the real estate expert not understand? Apparently, he slept through those classes in college . . . just as he sleeps through meetings in the Oval Office these days.

*. *. *

Next: Somehow this genius realtor — who graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a B.S. (how appropriate!) (okay, so it’s a Bachelor of Science degree) in Economics — got it into his head that it might help his phony “affordability” campaign if homeowners were able to obtain mortgages for as long as 50 years instead of the standard 30, thus saving roughly $119 per month that they could use to buy actual meat and vegetables for their families.

That might sound good to a young couple investing in their first home, or to a family struggling to make ends meet in the current “it’s-all-about-the-tariffs” economy. But what the brilliant realtor/economist failed to consider were three factors:

> First, extending the mortgage by 20 years could roughly double the dollar amount of interest paid over the life of the loan;

> Second, since most of the payments during the early years of a mortgage are applied to interest, it would take years longer to accumulate any sizable equity in the property; and

> Third, for most home buyers, it would mean their mortgages wouldn’t be paid off until they were in their 70s or 80s — well past the retirement age for many, and possibly never for some not lucky enough to live that long.

Brilliant!

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And finally, on the economics side, is his oh-so-generous idea of sending each and every taxpayer — excluding, for once, his upper-income-bracket friends, who would sneer at such a trifle in any event — a $2,000 “tariff dividend” check out of the trillions of dollars he claims the country has collected since January 20th.

But I wouldn’t go crazy on the holiday shopping just yet, because those checks haven’t been written and may never be.

As of this date, livemint.com reports:

“The IRS has confirmed there will be no new federal stimulus checks for November despite Trump’s tariff dividend proposal. Speculation on social media arose, but officials warn against potential phishing scams related to these announcements.” [Riya R. Alex, livemint.com, November 15, 2025.]

Earlier in the week, Trump had posted on Truth Social:

“We are taking in Trillions of Dollars and will soon begin paying down our ENORMOUS DEBT, $37 trillion. Record investment in the USA, plants and factories going up all over the place. A dividend of at least $2000 a person (not including high income people!) will be paid to everyone.” [Id.]

But wait! Don’t try taking that loaf of baloney to the bank, because, according to a fact check by KTVU:

“No new federal stimulus checks are authorised … Congress has not passed new legislation, and the IRS has made no confirmation.” [Id.]

And according to tax experts — who, by the way, apparently stayed awake during math class, unlike the White House’s resident real estate expert — the numbers do not add up. Erica York, vice president of federal tax policy for the Tax Foundation, wrote on X:

“If the cutoff [for qualified recipients’ income] is $100,000, 150M adults would qualify, for a cost near $300 billion. If kids qualify, that grows. Only problem, new tariffs have raised $120 billion so far.” [D’Angelo Gore, FactCheck.org, November 14, 2025.]

York did note that estimates for 2026 net revenue from tariffs would likely equal about $216 billion. But you can’t cut checks today on next year’s projected income. Banks don’t like that.

*. *. *

So there you have it: the real Wizard of Oz behind the curtain, who claims to be a real estate genius with a “very high IQ,” but doesn’t understand the legal requirements for demolition and construction, or how mortgages work, or what tariffs really are.

Or, for that matter, how to add and subtract.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
11/15/25