Source: NYT Maggie Habberman quoting Trump on Hannity

Mr. Trump told the Fox News host Sean Hannity that “everybody expects to be cut” when they send a bill. He said he could pick a bill at random out of thousands that the federal government is paying, one that was dealt with “by some bureaucrat.”

He offered an negotiating strategy, musing that an official could say, “I’ll give you three, I don’t want to pay you five. It’s too high. I’ll give you three.”

“But they don’t do that,” he said. “If a guy sends in a bill for 5,000, they pay 5,000. They expect to be cut. Everybody expects to be cut. When you send in a bill, you expect to be cut.”

The comments echo Mr. Trump’s long history as a real-estate developer, when he would brag about his negotiating prowess. He also was accused of not paying contractors and lawyers, as was his longtime lawyer and mentor, Roy M. Cohn.

Bonus Q: are any of you guys electricians, or concrete contractors? I need some major house panel rewiring, and eventually a barn basement poured. Just ... ahem ... send me your bill at the end.