Donato Tramuto, the Maine Governor wannabe built his image on a lie
Donato Tramuto wants to be Democratic Party candidate for governor of Maine. And he fits the mould, being a relentless self-publicist who counts Kerry Kennedy and the Cuomo family among his friends. But he spent over two decades fundraising for a “charitable” Foundation he named after himself, using a lie as the “elevator pitch” impress donors. He claimed to have a ticket for flight UA175, the flight that crashed into the South Tower on 9/11.
Can’t argue with the FBI records
We investigated and confirmed that never had a reservation or ticket for Flight UA175. Our evidence?Actual FBI documents released through the Freedom of Information Act. The FBI compiled meticulous records of all passengers who had bookings. They tracked down and spoke to everyone who missed the flight or changed their reservations. And Donato Tramuto is conspicuously absent from this lengthy list.
And sometimes it’s the little things that give a lie away. For instance, his Foundation’s website says he regularly commuted between Boston and Los Angeles on Mondays. But September 11, 2001 was a Tuesday. So, he evidently never intended to fly out of Boston on the day of America’s greatest tragedy.
Spending money raised on a 9/11 lie for his own benefit
Tramuto personally benefited from the dishonestly-obtained funds by funnelling the donations to the RFK Human Rights Foundation. Consequently, Tramuto received the “Ripple of Hope” award alongside Hillary Clinton. He also got a board seat at the RFK Human Rights Foundation. The RFK were happy to accept the cash, as they struggle to balance the books with high staff salaries. Most notably, $500,000 per year for director Kerry Kennedy.
We contacted Donato Tramuto, Kerry Kennedy and their Foundations, but had no response. Instead, Donato Tramuto has taken to indirect swipes at us on his LinkedIn. However, the explanation he offers for telling a false story for 20 years quickly fell apart when we examined it.
A First-Class Lie
His latest claim is that he thought about, but decided not to reserve a seat on UA175. His reason being First Class availability. In a 20 page explanation he writes:
“at the United Airlines gate I inquired about both flight options and was told that First Class was available for the Monday 5 pm flight and I could upgrade to that class. I mention first class because if it was not available, this would have been the strongest reason for me to fly out on Sept. 11. With a worsening toothache, I was not interested in flying coach”.
But we obtained the seating plan for UA175, and it shows there was an empty seat in First Class.
Tramuto’s claim that he gave up his UA175 reservation because First Class was full is therefore… a first class lie. The truth is he did not plan to fly on 9/11. He took his regular Monday flight as usual but subsequently fabricated a story he could tell people.
Time to come clean?
Tramuto wanted to be centre of attention and he exploited the deaths of 3000 Americans killed on 9/11. He named the Foundation after himself, not his friends who were killed. He did not name the Gamboa-Brandhorst family on the Tramuto Foundation website for at least the first decade after 9/11. We call on you to do the right thing and correct the record, Mr. Tramuto.