Taj Mahal DeTrumped

His name was once synonymous with Atlantic City poker-rooms and casinos, but no longer for the beleaguered POTUS Donald Trump, as the last vestiges of his involvement in the city’s gambling was removed this week.

The 17 Trump signs in and around the Taj Mahal casino - made famous in the iconic poker movie Rounders but closed since last year, the poker room itself for much longer – were the last part of the president’s casino heritage to leave the city, workers dismantling the various hoardings and illuminated beacons of a once-thriving gambling mecca.

One tweet from a man who knows all about the history of the game and the casino itself said it all, the author of several books on the history of gambling David G Schwartz tweeting:

This is historic. Since 1984, his name has loomed over Atlantic City. https://t.co/PW1skZTV4d

— David G. Schwartz (DrDave702) February 15, 2017

One of the workers helping to rid the casino of its Trump heritage, Russian Serge Bycov, denied any other involvement with Trump, the tongue-in-cheek question hinting at the President’s ongoing problems relating to his links with President Putin.

It’s been a while now, though, since Trump had to worry about his casino revenues in Atlantic City, Philly.com explaining that:

"The Taj was the last casino to have the Trump name on it in Atlantic City, and one of four that have closed since 2014. The Trump Plaza, which closed in 2014, had its Trump branding literally whitewashed out and boarded over.”

Trump had actually sued to have his name removed from the Taj Mahal, his licensing agreement with new owner, billionaire Carl Icahn, requiring that “the Trump signage be removed by March 2017” if renovations or improvements were not carried out.

The casino under Trump – which he described as ‘the 8th Wonder of the World’ when he opened it in on April 2nd, 1990 – has had a long history of both making money for its owner and then ‘changing hands’ through various bankruptcies.

Even after Trump ended his own much-maligned involvement in the place, the troubles continued, a long and well-documented worker’s strike leading to Icahn closing the place for good late last year, with thousands of job losses.

So, the Trump signs are on their way to scrapyards and other resting places – and Atlantic City will be looking for a new ‘wonder of the world’ to replace the once golden temple for gamblers.