ESPN Moves Golf Event From Trump Property

By Peter Grant 

ESPN on Monday became the latest major company to distance itself from Donald Trump since the presidential candidate's negative remarks about Mexican immigration.

The Walt Disney Co. unit said it would move a coming celebrity golf tournament from Trump National Golf Club in Los Angeles to another Southern California course.

Earlier, NBC dumped Mr. Trump from his reality show, "The Apprentice," while Macy's Inc. stopped carrying his menswear collection. In addition, Nascar canceled its season-ending awards ceremony that was to be held at a Trump resort in Florida.

The real-estate magnate, in announcing his bid last month for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination, said of Mexico: "They're sending people that have lots of problems...They're bringing drugs. They're bringing crime. They're rapists." He then added: "And some, I assume, are good people."

Mr. Trump had no immediate reaction to the ESPN announcement, but in a statement he said his remarks on Mexican immigration had been "deliberately distorted by the media." The statement acknowledged that he has "lost a lot" during his run for president. But the financial impact from his remarks is unclear.

When Mr. Trump announced his candidacy, he released a net worth statement that put a $3.3 billion value on his real-estate licensing deals, brand and brand development. On Monday, Mr. Trump said in an interview that most of that value was in "deals that were already done" and wouldn't be affected by his remarks on immigration.

He also pointed out that by one measure his brand is solid: recent polls that show he is among the front-runners among Republican candidates. "That's part of a brand," he said.

Mr. Trump ranked second in a recent national poll, and he has registered among the top Republican candidates in the early-voting states of Iowa and New Hampshire--though surveys also show many voters in his own party have an unfavorable view of him.

Write to Peter Grant at [e-mail]

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