As Donald Trump continues to extend his polling lead for the GOP presidential nomination in 2016, he’s been taking some times to make some deals on the side, too, it seems. Trump just announced on Twitter that he now has complete control over Miss Universe:
Just purchased NBC’s half of The Miss Universe Organization and settled all lawsuits against them. Now own 100% — stay tuned!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 11, 2015
The move comes after NBC said it wouldn’t air the pageants due to controversial comments Trump made when he announced his candidacy earlier this year. At the time, NBC released a statement, saying, “At NBC, respect and dignity for all people are cornerstones of our values. Due to the recent derogatory statements by Donald Trump regarding immigrants, NBCUniversal is ending its business relationship with Mr. Trump.”
It added, “To that end, the annual Miss USA and Miss Universe Pageants, which are part of a joint venture between NBC and Trump, will no longer air on NBC. In addition, as Mr. Trump has already indicated, he will not be participating in Celebrity Apprentice on NBC.”
Trump, meanwhile, hit back at the time. “If NBC is so weak and so foolish to not understand the serious illegal immigration problem in the United States, coupled with the horrendous and unfair trade deals we are making with Mexico, then their contract violating closure of Miss Universe/Miss USA will be determined in court,” he said in a statement to Fox. “Furthermore, they will stand behind lying Brian Williams, but won’t stand behind people that tell it like it is, as unpleasant as that may be.”
In other recent Trump news, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal recently compared Trump to Kim Kardashian.