Texts, emails and the deception of elderly political donors

Make Me Smart

As Election Day looms closer, the emails and texts from campaigns pleading for money continue to flood voters’ inboxes. A CNN investigation found that some of these tactics have misled elderly Americans into giving away millions of dollars. We’ll get into the financial consequences of aggressive campaign fundraising strategies. Then, we’ll discuss how Republican pundits are responding to former President Donald Trump’s shocking statements about military affairs. And, we’ll talk about a payment owed from a defamation case: a luxury New York apartment.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

• “Trump: ‘I Need the Kind of Generals That Hitler Had’” from The Atlantic
• “How elderly dementia patients are unwittingly fueling political campaigns” from CNN
• “Brains and Losses: Aging and Financial Vulnerability to Scams” from Marketplace
• “Do presidential candidates really need your money at this point in the race?” from Marketplace
• “Giuliani ordered to surrender apartment, valuables to Georgia election workers” from Reuters

Join Kai Ryssdal and Kimberly Adams for a live taping of “Make Me Smart” on Oct. 25 in Boston. In-person tickets are sold out, but you can still join us virtually. Get your tickets here.