The Trump family fraud exposed: Ivanka gets lucky with Trump Org. case
It’s been a long time coming but it finally happened. Donald Trump, several of his businesses and two of his sons were found guilty of fraud for massively inflating the value of their holdings and companies. Is it possible that Trump’s pathological lying and grandiose bragging finally caught up with him after all of these years?
The civil fraud case brought by New York Attorney General Leticia James was so unassailable to Justice Arthur F. Engoron that he issued a summary judgment on behalf of the state which strips control of Trump’s businesses from the family and may cost the former president as much as $250 million. The judge said that after looking at the facts and the arguments there was no need for a trial to determine that Trump had committed fraud. The ruling is what lawyers call the “corporate death penalty.”
Trump’s main lawyer in the case, Alina Habba, who travels with him frequently on his campaign plane, was hired by Trump after meeting her at his Bedminster Golf Club. She was previously general counsel for a parking lot concern and was known for her representation of former Real Housewife of New Jersey castmate Siggy Flicker in a case against Facebook, which she claimed had disabled her account for wishing Melania Trump a happy birthday.
Evidently, her defense of Donald Trump’s allegedly multi-billion dollar empire wasn’t convincing to the judge who indicated that Habba didn’t really even bother to present one, saying that it basically consisted of her saying “the documents do not say what they say; that there is no such thing as ‘objective’ value; and that essentially the Court should not believe its own eyes.” Judge Engoron sanctioned each defense lawyer $7,500 for repeatedly using the same incorrect arguments after ruling them invalid. “Defendants’ conduct in reiterating these frivolous arguments is egregious,” he wrote in judgment. “We are at the point of intentional and blatant disregard of controlling authority and the law of the case.” Yikes.
Trump ranted on Truth Social that it was all a Witch Hunt and the judge and the prosecutors are all out to get him. The usual. He insists that he never inflated the value of his company and that, in fact, his valuations are all very low because he doesn’t include the greatest value of all, his “brand” which is apparently worth gazillions. Hilariously, in his deposition, cited by the court, Trump defended himself by saying that the valuation of his properties cannot be inflated because he could find a ‘buyer from Saudi Arabia’ to pay any price he suggests. Now why would that be, I wonder?
We knew that Trump was a crook from the Trump University fraud case which Trump settled for $25 million after he won the White House to the grotesque con game his family called the “Trump Foundation,” which they used for their own benefit and which was dissolved in a previous civil case they lost. The blatant pay-to-play at the Trump hotel and his various resorts during his presidency was astonishing.
Trump has trained his followers to believe that any attempt to hold him accountable, regardless of the facts, even those they can see with their own eyes, are part of a massive conspiracy to destroy him.
That his sons are caught up in this one is particularly notable since this particular scam has been intergenerational from the start. The blockbuster New York Times exposé of Trump’s father’s various dubious ploys to shelter his earnings from taxes showed this was a family affair from the time Trump and his siblings were toddlers. This latest case nails Eric and Donald Jr. right along with Trump since they were also “executives” who are legally liable for these fraudulent practices.
Don Jr. took to Twitter to rant about “weaponized Blue State Marxist America,” which he does pretty much every day anyway.
While Eric is apparently a world-class whiner who seems to be throwing his father and brother under the bus:
While everyone can see that this case is egregious, the only thing worse than weaponizing the legal system against a political opponent is unfairly going after their family. Both the Attorney General and the Judge know I had absolutely NOTHING to do with this case. Every single person has testified that my job has always been acquiring, developing and managing properties, not back office functions. The only reason I am collateral damage is because my last name is Trump and I am unwavering in the support of my father, his accomplishments and what he has done for our country, a nation which is now rapidly in decline.
Poor Eric didn’t have anything to do with all those “back office functions” like the rest of them. He “acquires, develops and manages properties”, you know, the important stuff. I guess that’s why he took the 5th over 500 times when they deposed him.
That his sons are caught up in this one is particularly notable since this particular scam has been intergenerational from the start.
Ivanka, meanwhile, is off the hook for this particular scam because the Appellate Division of the State Supreme Court dismissed the charges against her when the attorney general missed a deadline for filing the case against her. She’s very lucky. (She was also up to her neck in the Trump pump and dump hustle in which they similarly lied about valuation of their properties to investors and customers alike.)
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The amount that Trump will have to pay will be decided at a trial set to begin next week, presided over by the same judge. Trump’s lawyers have already said they will appeal the ruling and they have sued the judge over a separate issue which an appeals court panel will decide this week. If none of that works (and it might, you never know) Trump will be on trial next week. Since the judge has already found Trump guilty, it shouldn’t last long.
In a healthy political culture, Donald Trump being found guilty of fraud for lying for years about his wealth would at least put a dent in his reputation as a successful businessman. Sadly, we do not have a healthy political culture so this is unlikely to change anything. Trump has trained his followers to believe that any attempt to hold him accountable, regardless of the facts, even those they can see with their own eyes, are part of a massive conspiracy to destroy him.
That argument obviously didn’t work on this judge, who is rational and able to see the facts before him, but the MAGA movement is beyond reason. The more proof that is presented of Donald Trump’s corruption and criminality, the more they respect and revere him. But at least the rest of us know that we aren’t crazy and that’s about the best we can hope for.
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