Posted on 10/02/2023 1:31:45 PM PDT by Signalman
Former President Donald Trump fumed against Judge Arthur Engoron on Monday as he left a Manhattan courtroom after appearing for the start of a civil trial on charges brought by New York Attorney General Letitia James, a Democrat, after Engoron already ruled that the former president committed fraud while building his business empire.
In a major blow to the former president, Engoron ruled last week that Trump, his associates and his businesses inflated their net worth for years to secure benefits such as advantageous loans and lower insurance premiums. Trump has specifically taken issue with how Engoron, citing the Palm Beach County assessor, appraised the value of Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida as being worth $18 million to $27.6 million.
Speaking to reporters after leaving the courtroom, Trump read the headline of "The New York Sun" article, "Error in New York’s Civil Fraud Case Against Trump Is Flagged by Industry Insiders, Who Say Valuation of Mar-a-Lago Cited by Judge Is Based on a Misunderstanding of Basic Real Estate Practice."
Trump said he does not know the people quoted in the article, but said, "They saw this egregious trial, this horrible, horrible trial going on, while at the same time, people are being murdered right here outside on the streets and nothing happens to the people doing the murdering."
Pointing to the article again, Trump said, "So this was just released by Palm Beach County, that the judge in this case was wrong."
In addition to local real estate experts, the article also cites Palm Beach County Property Appraiser’s Office public information officer Becky Robinson, who said that her unit has a "specific scope of responsibility when it comes to valuation of property for the purposes of taxation," but does not focus on the market value.
"I do not believe that our office would be the best to answer these questions," Robinson said when asked about the assessment of market value.
Trump added that the trial could set a dangerous precedent for other businesses in the state, and said that anyone who does business in New York is "crazy" because of it.
Because of Engoron's actions, Trump argued he should be "disbarred" and removed from office.
James posted on X, formerly Twitter, Monday morning before the trial: "We have proven that Donald Trump lied about his net worth to enrich himself and cheat the system. No matter how rich or powerful you are, in America, there are consequences for breaking the law."
She also spoke in front of the courthouse before the trial Monday. Similarly, Trump spoke to reporters earlier in the day before heading into the courtroom.
"This is the single greatest witch hunt of all time," he said. "We have a racist attorney general who ran on the basis of 'She's going to get Trump' before she even knew about me. ... What we have is an attempt to hurt me in an election." Addressing reporters before entering the courtroom Monday, Trump railed against the judge's evaluation of his properties.
"We have a rogue judge who ruled that properties were worth a tiny fraction, one one-hundredth, a tiny fraction of what they actually are," Trump said. "Just so you know, my financial statements are phenomenal. They are actually less in terms of the numbers used than the actual net worth. The actual net worth is substantially more. No bank was affected. No bank was hurt. They don't even know why they have to be involved."
"What we have here is an attempt to hurt me in an election," Trump also said. "This trial could have been brought years ago, but they waited until I was right in the middle of my campaign."
James said she will now be using the non-jury trial to seek "to ban the Trumps from doing business in New York and pay hundreds of millions of dollars in ill-gotten gains."
Trump had said Sunday evening on Truth Social that he would appear in "Court tomorrow morning to fight for my name and reputation against a corrupt and racist Attorney General, Letitia James, who campaigned on 'getting Trump,' and a Trump Hating Judge who is unfair, unhinged, and vicious in his PURSUIT of me."
Trump has consistently attacked James since she started investigating the Trump Organization for potential fraud in 2019.
Trump is not expected to testify in the case for several more weeks, according to The Associated Press.
The former president's appearance is a break from his previous practices. He did not show up in court when former Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg pleaded guilty to tax fraud last year. He also did not appear when a jury found him liable for battery and defamation in claims brought by author E. Jean Carroll.
In the latest civil trial, James is seeking $250 million in penalties and a ban on business in the state. Additionally, if Engoron's ruling from last week is upheld on appeal, Trump would be forced to give up some of his iconic New York properties such as Trump Tower, and some of his companies would be controlled by a court-appointed receiver.
Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida as being worth $18 million to $27.6 million.
Which is the Average cost of the Guard Shack out front.
“Judge” Eng-moron looks like a clown.
How do you defeat tyranny in the U.S?
By getting angry? They don’t care.
By using common sense? They couldn’t care less. Common sense has no power to arrest them
There’s ONLY ONE WAY to defeat tyranny in the U.S.
1) First DEFINE tyranny AKA the Deep State: Tyranny AKA the Deep State is the UNCONSTITUTIONAL act and agencies of the federal and/or state government.
2) Once you get what tyranny is, how do you defeat it? By ENFORCING THE CONSTITUTION which is the Supreme Law of the Land against the federal government (or state constitutions against rogue state governments, like NY).
THE CONSTITUTION boys and girls, ladies and gentlemen.
The Constitution is the MOST powerful weapon Trump can use against these criminals because the Constitution is what MAKES them criminals besue when they violate the Constitution their acts are ILLEGAL and, thus, they can be validly arrested for illegal acts.
TRUMP, AMERICA, REINSTATE AND ENFORCE THE CONSTITUTION AGAINST THESE WORST-OF-ALL OFFICIAL GOVERNMENT CRIMINALS!!!!!
IF he had undervalued his properties, he would have been accused of avoiding taxes through under reporting. Heads they win, Tails he loses.
Judges should moonlight as real estate appraisers.
Good point
I am sure Trump will appeal, and we’ll see. It seems like a major stretch of a case. The value of a property is whatever the market says it is worth, not what a judge or various appraisers thinks it is worth. You could have two identical buildings right next to each other, one could be worth considerably more because of various intangible factors such as, for example, maybe a famous mafioso was murdered in the doorway or was shot to death in a barber chair; or one has the Trump name on it while the other doesn’t.
People still go to Sparks to eat an expensive steak because Paul Castellano was killed there. You can get a better steak down the block for less money. Does that mean Sparks should face civil fines? Should the owner of Sparks’ building pay fines for charging more in rent to the restaurant operator than the landlord of an identical space across the street?
Watched a video by Mark Dice the other day which included comments about the Judge’s valuation of Mar-a-lago. Mark showed a Zillow webpage for a piece of ocean-front property that consisted of 2.2 acres, and was completely overgrown. They were asking $150 million for the lot. I think Mark said that Mar-a-lago consists of at least 17 acres and the Judge valued it at what? 17 million?
Judge undervalued his assets, ‘drive-by appraisals’.
I hear appraisals are for tax reasons only and have no bearing on loans given?.
Paging Perry Mason
the judge allowed cameras because this is a show trial
you cant have a show without cameras
I am still voting for President Trump...again.
Also, the banks did their own due diligence.
Not only that, but higher valuations certainly do not mean cheaper insurance premiums.
The claim is Trump lied on loan applications which is a felony. I believe they need to prove intent which will be tough. Even if found guilty, how they could force him to dissolve companies and exit business and not buy any real estate in NY for 5 years seems like unconstitutional baloney to me.
The fix is in. Not sure what Trump can do to stop any of this madness.
The property appraiser has the taxable amount at 33 million plus which means it’s officially worth that much at minimum (not counting the homestead exemption that’s been subtracted). That tells you that the judge is deliberately undervaluing Trump’s property which can be found on our state’s open property information.
So if Trump Inc. has been paying property taxes on inflated values ( according to the court ) does he get a tax refund?
Since he was not formally given any legitimate appraisal evidence at a trial Beas a judge has NO STANDING as an asset appraiser. Just a leftist partisan hack
“’What’s the difference between a liberal and a conservative? A liberal will interpret the constitution, a conservative will quote it!’ ~Rush Limbaugh
We are fighting against a power that no longer recognizes the Constitution.
Your county evaluates your property for tax purposes.
The lender appraises the properties for lending purposes.
They don’t, just, take your valuation.
“Yep, Mr Banker, my doublewide, in the flood plain, in Tornado Alley, is worth Eleventy Billion Dollars
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