Trump told gas retailers to copy Freedom Fuel's pricing strategy in July. Freedom Fuel achieved those low prices using a business model best described as "not paying for the fuel." The supplier wants its money. The president wanted a photo op. Everyone got what they deserved.
Freedom Fuel expanded to Detroit while actively being sued for unpaid fuel bills. This is the corporate equivalent of opening a second restaurant location while the health inspector is still counting rats at the first one. Bold moves only look visionary in retrospect. Right now it looks like someone who thinks geography solves insolvency.
The free publicity from a presidential endorsement is worth millions. The unpaid fuel bills are also worth millions. The accounting works out if you squint and believe in manifesting abundance through positive cash flow visualization. The supplier's lawyers do not squint. They file motions.
Retail traders saw the Trump endorsement and probably bought shares in whatever tangentially related energy stock their cousin mentioned at Thanksgiving. They did not ask whether the endorsed company pays its bills. They did not check if lawsuits exist. They saw a president say words and clicked buy. This is why your broker sends you risk disclosure documents you never read.
Freedom Fuel kept the fuel. Freedom from payment. The supplier kept the lawsuit. Trump kept talking. Detroit got a new gas station owned by people who may or may not believe in the concept of accounts payable.
The irony is not that a president promoted a company being sued for nonpayment. The irony is that anyone expected due diligence from a man who endorsed steaks, vodka, and a university that stopped existing. But sure, this gas station will be different.
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