Where there's smoke, there's insanity
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New York Puts The Heavy on Trump


Hit with a new lawsuit like a ton of bricks

My story also on Medium

New York attorney general Lititia James has filed charges against Donald Trump and 3 of his children accusing them of fraud. In addition to $250 million in damages, New York seeks to bar the Trumps from ever again serving as executives on any company registered or licensed in New York. [Washington Post] The 222-page civil complaint also seeks to bar the Trumps from acquiring any commercial real estate or receiving any loans from New York financial institutions for the next 5 years. Decades upon decades of fraud perpetrated on New York State and its taxpayers are finally coming back to haunt Mr. Trump.

You can guess which other “3 Stooges” in the Trump family were named: Ivanka, Eric and Donald Jr. The suit also names Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg, who recently pleaded guilty to tax crimes, and its financial controller, Jeffrey McConney; they are also sought to be barred from serving in future financial capacities similar to the restrictions sought for the Trumps.

“Donald Trump falsely inflated his net worth by billions of dollars to unjustly enrich himself and to cheat the system, thereby cheating all of us”

— New York Attorney General

In all, the attorney general’s office submitted 873 pages of arguments and exhibits, including Trump’s annual statements of financial condition from 2011 through 2021. For example, Trump’s celebrated Mar-a-Lago was valued at $739 million on false premises the property could be used in ways it could not. The true value of Mar-a-Lago was 10X less, only $75 million, the lawsuit says. Trump’s New York triplex apartment at Trump Tower on Fifth Avenue had its size inflated to increase its value, reporting 30,000 square feet when really it was a third of that size.

These transgressions may seem small, individually, but they add up over time and show a pattern of willful and wonton abandon for the law. Moreover, there’s going to be a clear and distinct paper trail to support New York’s accusations. A true but all-too-expected, cliché remark by Attorney General James was, “Claiming you have money that you do not have does not amount to the art of the deal. It’s the art of the steal. There cannot be different rules for different people in this country or in this state.

Break out the “Corporate Cuffs”!

The weight of this lawsuit and the red hot spotlight Trump already finds himself under puts him in a very precarious position. It’s important to remember that Donald Trump has never really faced charges like this before. Sure, it’s not a criminal complaint but $250 million dollars could be enough to bankrupt the Trumps, given all the other complications they currently face. Combined with an inability to receive loans or generate income from corporate boards and you’re in a real pickle.

[I want] to see his tears run down his lumpy, mashed-potato cheeks like bad mascara as it smears his orange face paint.

Wouldn’t it be great to see Uncle Sam give him a nice, proper spanking? Hold him upside down, perhaps, and let’s see how much loose change and cheeseburger wrappers fall out of his pants pockets. This comes at a time when many of Trump’s own hotels have been quickly and quietly removing the “Trump” name from their brands and extricating them from their business ties and profit-sharing relationships with Trump. Poor Donnie! If he was capable of feeling human emotions, perhaps we’d get to see his tears run down his lumpy, mashed-potato cheeks like bad mascara as it smears his orange face paint. Until then, I’ll just have to dream about it…

By Adam Schuster
Where there's smoke, there's insanity

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