Donald Trump's Obama bombshell? Not so much a bombshell. It's really just Trump sitting at his desk, very loudly and vehemently declaring his opinion that the president isn't transparent enough ... so Trump is pulling out his checkbook. In his promised big announcement, which he made via YouTube video today, Trump started by noting that he is "very honored to have gotten [Obama] to release his long-form birth certificate—or whatever it may be." But people still have questions, and that's why Trump is offering to donate $5 million to the charity of Obama's choice if the president releases "his college records and applications" and "his passport applications and records" by 5pm on Oct. 31. Trump will be "totally satisfied" at that point, he promises; we assume that means no more birther stuff. Yep ... that's really the entire "bombshell."
Of course, Trump finds a way to drag all that out into a nearly 3-minute video, as well as a page-long press release that's basically just a transcript of the video with a bit of added value (like a line stating that Obama "has spent millions of dollars in legal fees" to ensure we know so little about his life). Trump "very much want[s]" to write the $5 million check, he assures us—as long as Obama meets the requirements "to my satisfaction," he says. White House senior adviser David Plouffe was, of course, asked about the "bombshell," and he directed all questions to Mitt Romney's headquarters, Politico reports. "Donald Trump is Mitt Romney’s biggest supporter, so he owns everything he says," Plouffe said. (More Donald Trump stories.)