Fact check: Donald Trump threatened legal action if the colleges and universities released his grade transcripts.

1. Summary of the results

The statement is thoroughly substantiated by multiple sources. Michael Cohen, Trump's former attorney, did send threatening letters to Trump's educational institutions on Trump's direct orders ^[1]. Specifically documented is a May 2015 letter to Fordham University that threatened both "criminal and civil liability" and potential loss of government funding if Trump's academic records were released ^[2]. Fordham University has confirmed receiving such communication ^[3].

2. Missing context/alternative viewpoints

Several important contextual elements were omitted from the original statement:

• The threats weren't limited to colleges - they extended to Trump's high school and the College Board regarding his SAT scores ^[1]
• Federal privacy laws (FERPA) already protect student records from public disclosure, making the threats seemingly unnecessary ^[3]
• A fake Trump report card was circulated online, which Fordham University explicitly confirmed was a forgery ^[4]
• Trump had transferred from Fordham to Wharton and did not graduate with honors, contrary to his public claims of being a top student ^[5]

3. Potential misinformation/bias in the original statement

The original statement, while accurate, understates the scope of the situation. There's significant irony in this situation that provides important context:

• Trump had previously demanded that Barack Obama release his academic records while simultaneously working to prevent the release of his own ^{[6] [1]}
• The legal threats went beyond just "legal action" - they specifically included threats of:
• Criminal and civil liability
• Loss of government funding
• Demands for permanent sealing of records ^{[2] [6]}

This context suggests that the situation involves not just privacy concerns but potentially broader issues of public transparency and consistency in political discourse. The beneficiaries of keeping these records private would primarily be Trump himself, particularly given his public claims about his academic performance that appear to conflict with available information ^[5].