Investment advisor Kevin O’Leary says a threat by New York Attorney General Letitia James to seize former president Donald Trump’s assets if he cannot pay a nearly half a billion fine for fraud is akin to diktats by developing world nations.
‘Venezuela, Not New York’
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O’Leary, head of start-up investment firm O’Leary Ventures, said the difficulty facing the GOP frontrunner for this year’s presidential election was “what happens in Venezuela, not New York.”
‘A Little Scary’
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Speaking on Fox Business show Mornings with Maria on Monday, O’Leary, 69, said: “Capital comes to America because of the stability of the justice system. This is not stable, in terms of many people’s eyes, domestically and internationally. Seizing assets happens in Venezuela; it doesn’t happen in New York. So this is a little scary.”
Trump’s Civil Fraud Case
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Trump, his adult sons Donald Jr and Eric and former executives of their retail empire, the Trump Organization, were found guilty in a Manhattan court of “persistent and repeated fraud” by lying about the value of their assets to get cheap loans and insurance. The judge overseeing the case, Arthur Engoron, issued a $354 million fine but with backdated interest, the figure soars to $454 million. And it rises by a further $112,000 for each day it is not paid. The defendants were also barred from doing business in New York for three years.
Trump’s Appeal
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Trump is appealing the verdict, but under New York law, he must pay the full fine amount or post a bond to the appellate court, which holds it in escrow until a decision is made. This week, Trump’s legal team asked if they could pay just $100 million of the total.
‘Exorbitant and Punitive’ Fine
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Trump lawyers Clifford Robert, Alina Habba and Michael Farina said in a filing to an appeals court: “The exorbitant and punitive amount of the judgment, coupled with an unlawful and unconstitutional blanket prohibition on lending transactions, would make it impossible to secure and post a complete bond.”
‘Insufficient Liquid Assets’
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The New York Attorney General’s office opposed the lawyers’ request, saying that the “[d]efendants all but concede that Trump has insufficient liquid assets to satisfy the judgment; defendants would need ‘to raise capital.’ A prevailing plaintiff is entitled to have her award secured, and defendants have never demonstrated that Mr Trump’s liquid assets could satisfy the full amount of the judgment.”
Denial of Request
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The appeals court denied Trump’s request, meaning he still has to pay the full fine amount upon appeal of Engoron’s verdict, or post a bond from a specialist firm that promises to pay the fine in total should Trump lose the appeal.
‘No Victim Here’
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O’Leary said on Fox Business: “Remember there is no money lost; there’s no victim here. So essentially, just under half a billion-dollar fine for a situation where no monies were lost and the harmed party, supposedly the banks, were fully paid back.”
‘Reasonable Number’
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He said: “We are wondering does this make sense, asking ourselves how long will it take for the appellate court to bring down to a what reasonable number might be. I have no idea what that is.”
‘Exodus of Capital from New York’
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O’Leary claimed that in the wake of “quiet exodus of capital leaving New York” and that the money was instead “going to North Dakota, Oklahoma, West Virginia, Montana, Tennessee.”
‘New York No Longer on List’
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He said that in those states, “they have the same power and if you look at governors there, spending that much money, you are in partnership with the government. New York is no longer on that list.”
Another Big Fine
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The fraud trial fine is not the only fine Trump has recently been hit with. In January, a jury in New York agreed with writer E. Jean Carroll that Trump had defamed her following a trial last year in which another jury found him guilty of sexual assault against Carroll. In the latter case, the jury awarded the writer $5 million in damages, and the subsequent trial ordered that Trump had to pay her $83.3 million.
Trump’s Cash Reserves
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In sworn testimony for the fraud trial, Trump — who is estimated by Forbes magazine to be worth around $2.6 billion — said he had more than $400 million in cash. But as that figure is not enough to pay his recent fines, he may have to start selling off some of his many properties around the country, legal analysts believe.
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The post Investment Guru Kevin O’Leary Is Worried About the “Scary” Possibility of Trump’s Assets Getting Seized appeared first on Fine-Tuned Finances.
