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Did you hear about Trump's latest legal loss?

A New York judge ruled on Tuesday that Donald trump, his two adult sons, and several of his associates are liable for fraud. The ruling establishes that Trump overvalued his properties and inflated his net worth over several years, thus deceiving banks, investors, and insurers. 

The ruling strips Trump and several of his co-defendants of their business licenses within New York. On October 2nd a trial will begin to see what Trump will have to pay in damages - which is expected to be around 250 million dollars. Cheers!

Posted - September 26, 2023
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Responses


  • 3820
    Thanks for explaining that.  Makes sense, but Trump will surely appeal.  I heard about how much he inflated the size of his apartment - same size as his ego.  What I'm surprised about is that this all wasn't discovered sooner either by banks with which he did business or by the IRS.  
      September 28, 2023 10:00 AM MDT
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  • 11087
    No doubt he will appeal. I agree about the banks - was it collusion or incompetence?  I'm sure the IRS had a whole different set of financial statements. The IRS would be looking at his Profit and Loss rather than his  Balance Sheet. As I recall he paid pennies in income tax.
      September 28, 2023 10:22 AM MDT
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  • 13277
    Putting aside any feelings about Trump, he has every right to and should appeal.
      September 28, 2023 12:11 PM MDT
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  • 13277
    But as I said, civil lawsuits in New York often are not always subject to jury trials. Many go to bench trials, where the verdict is decided by a judge anyway.
      September 28, 2023 10:20 AM MDT
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  • 11087
    I have some questions about how the banks didn't notice his flagrant exaggerations. I don't know if it was collusion or incompetence. The judge called his financial statements a fantasy world. Even I would want to double check on his penthouse valuation of $327M. That's insanely high even for NYC. 

    His financial statements caused the banks to underestimate their risks and give Trump a more favorable interest rate. It gave him an unfair advantage over other loan applicants.

    He should have been in prison for the Trump University fraud and the Trump Foundation fraud. I question the ethics and morals and/or the intelligence of any person who can look at how he operates and think he cares about the US and its citizens. The presidency is just another giant grift to him.

    This post was edited by Jane S at September 30, 2023 2:03 PM MDT
      September 28, 2023 10:14 AM MDT
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  • 13277
    Not sure how that could have happened. In my experience with rental properties here in NYC, the value for lending decisions is determined by independent appraisal.
      September 28, 2023 10:23 AM MDT
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  • 11087
    His valuations were for his statement of net worth, which is used to determine the borrower's ability to repay and the bank's risk. If he were borrowing against those properties, I think there would have been an appraisal.  If I take out a mortgage, the  bank appraises the property I am buying, but also looks at my income and ability to pay. That said, they should have done more to verify his financial statement. 
      September 28, 2023 10:33 AM MDT
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  • 13277
    When I refinanced my building last year, I had to show all kinds of bank and financial statements to prove income, and they pulled a credit report. I couldn’t have lied about these things even if I wanted to.
      September 28, 2023 10:39 AM MDT
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  • 11087
    I'm with you. This doesn't pass the smell test. Maybe there are different standards for insiders.
      September 28, 2023 11:14 AM MDT
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