James Cross
Former President Donald Trump has seen his share of lawsuits over his nearly eighty years of life, but none more public than the lawsuits and court cases that he has been enduring for the last four years. He has sold himself as a smart and savvy businessman over the years – a selling point that had a hand in winning him the presidency – but recent events may be peeling off the mask of Donald Trump.
Ongoing Legal Troubles for Trump
Donald Trump’s legal troubles didn’t begin after he left the presidency. Rather, many of the cases that have been brought against the former president have been investigated for many years. Several of them were even being investigated while the former president was still in the Oval Office.
Due to Trump’s tendency to lie and wiggle his way out of paying his employees, it’s perhaps unsurprising that one of the cases Trump has found himself charged in regards lying. Specifically tax fraud. In the state of New York, Trump, his adult sons, Allen Weisselberg, and the Trump organization have found themselves at the center of an investigation regarding property valuation and taxes.
Accused of Inflating Property Values
Specifically, Trump and his associates were accused by the state of New York of engaging in dubious practices surrounding property values, and taxes. Attorney General Leticia James alleged, in the charges, that Trump was guilty of inflating property values of buildings owned by the organization in order to gain preferable terms for loans from banks.
Likewise, he was also accused of exaggerating not only property values, but his own net worth in order to secure loans from banks, as well as make other deals. This was all in pursuit of building his real estate empire, an organization that Trump has used as, essentially, his brand in all things.
No Criminal Charges, Only Civil
Given that the accusations were under a civil trial, there were no criminal charges surrounding the accusations. However, the judge in the case, Arthur Engoron, found Trump and his associates liable for committing fraud in a pretrial hearing.
The hearing that followed this judgment was purely to determine the level of monetary reparations that Trump would be obligated to pay to the state. The rumors were that the judgment would be substantial, as Leticia James was looking to recoup costs for the state of New York for decades of fraud.
An Obligatory Judgment
The 92-page decision in the case was stunning when it came down. Engoron ruled that, since there was clear evidence that Trump had defrauded banks in the state of New York, that he would be obligated to pay $355 million in reparations to the state, plus interest, for a whopping total of more than $400 million.
This judgment came on the heels of another bond that Trump had to post in New York. In his multiple defamation lawsuit cases, Trump was ordered to pay E. Jean Carroll more than $80 million for his actions against her.
Business Licenses Suspended, Too
Trump’s business licenses to practice in the state of New York were also revoked by Engoron, for a total of three years. His adult sons, Don Jr. and Eric Trump, were prevented from working in the state of New York for one year, which is a significant blow to the younger Trumps.
And while the business licenses are nothing to sniff at for Trump himself, it pales in comparison to the amount of money that he was ordered to pay. Like many wealthy individuals, Trump has an incredibly high net worth. However, that net worth is tied up in stocks and other investments, meaning that coming up with more than half a billion dollars in cash in order to pay off these judgments was going to be incredibly difficult.
Appealing the Ruling
Trump, of course, immediately appealed the ruling and asked for a lower judgment amount. He claimed that James and Engoron were both prejudiced against him as well as corrupt, and stated that having to pay such an exorbitant amount as the original judgment would be incredibly damaging for him.
Trump doesn’t appear to be the only person who shares that belief. Kevin O’Leary, one of the co-hosts of the TV show Shark Tank, came out firmly against Leticia James recently, over news that she was already filing paperwork to have Trump’s assets reclaimed by the state to pay for the judgment against him.
Undermining Investor Trust
Primary among O’Leary’s concerns is that the move from James would undermine investors’ trust in the United States economy. He revealed this opinion to Laura Ingraham on “The Ingraham Angle” on Fox News.
O’Leary went on to explain that he believes that trust is “the essence of what makes the American brand the No. 1 economy on Earth. The collateral damage to the American brand is horrific.”
Troubles in New York
O’Leary also specified that the threat of Trump losing his New York properties would pose troubles for him – that is, O’Leary himself – as he travels the globe in the coming weeks to raise money for a $3 billion data center.
“The number one question I have when I go to these countries to try and raise this capital is ‘What the hell is going on in New York?’ And I tell them, ‘It’s not America. It’s just an anomaly. I swear to you, everybody, this is not America,’” O’Leary stated bluntly.
James Ready to Seize Assets
In regards to the bond itself, Trump has been ordered to pay the bond, including interest, and was given a deadline of this coming Monday in order to start paying. James has stated before that she is perfectly willing to seize Trump’s properties if he’s unable to pay the entirety of the judgment.
O’Leary took particular exception to the deadline that was given to Trump to post his bond. He described the seizure of Trump’s assets as an attempt to “steal,” rather than a lawful reclamation of assets in the face of severe financial obligation.
Leaning into the Constitution
“Property rights are mentioned 37 times in the Constitution. Due process, very important/ Why steal someone’s assets in 27 days?” O’Leary asked. “Why not give them more time to come up with the cash? Forget about Donald Trump. Who would want this to happen to them?”
O’Leary admitted in the same interview that the entire situation had spooked him away from investing further in the state of New York. He is a Canadian citizen, meaning that his personal involvement in United States politics is less than locals, but he is still an influential figure in conservative politics both in Canada and abroad.
“Nothing to do with Trump”
O’Leary was quick to state that his criticism of James’ move to seize Trump’s assets had nothing to do with Trump himself. Ingraham accused Letiticia James of targeting Trump specifically multiple times in the interview, and O’Leary never commented on the statements specifically.
He even went so far as to state that he didn’t know who she was specifically, or really, the true specifics of the case. He did state that he was concerned about the precedent that a choice like this might set, though, wondering “Who’s next?”
Claiming he has the Money
In a Truth Social post made this past week, Trump went out of his way to specifically claim that he had the money to pay the bond. He did this after his legal team and lawyers said that he wouldn’t be able to find that much cash in time to pay the bond.
“Through hard work, talent, and luck, I currently have almost five hundred million dollars in cash, a substantial amount of which I intended to use in my campaign for President,” Trump said. This statement comes after he successfully paid his existing bond for the E. Jean Carroll case earlier this year.
A Successful Appeal
Trump’s appeal to the state of New York turned out to be successful, with the judgment of more than $450 million being reduced to under $200 million on Monday. This is still a substantial amount of money to come up with on short term, but the appeals process also granted him ten more days to come up with the money.
Neither O’Leary or the Trump team have responded to requests for comment regarding O’Leary’s interview on the contentious Trump matter. Whether they’ll continue speaking about the issue now that Trump has successfully mitigated the financial damage remains to be seen, and the legal problems for the former president are far from over.
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