Pulitzer Prize-Winning Journalist On The NY AG's "Breathtaking" Investigation Of Trump's Finances- MSNBC

[Rhiannon12866]

Susanne Craig has spent the past 6 years doggedly investigating Donald Trump’s financial matters, and she’s received a Pulitzer for her work. Following New York Attorney General Letitia James’ civil suit against Trump and his three eldest children alleging that they engaged in business fraud by inflating assets and misrepresenting their worth to financial institutions, she doesn’t mince her words: “He deceived them, he lied to them, and he certified it year after year for personal gain.”

This isn’t the only legal trouble for the Trump family, but it could be devastating if they lose the lawsuit and are made to pay hundreds of millions of dollars. “You can see it’s very hard in that information to find any one of his businesses that makes money,” Craig tells Ali Velshi. “This isn’t somebody who’s walking around with a huge amount of cash just to be able to settle a case.” - Aired on 09/25/2022.

[intrepidity]

1. Glad to see this, thanks

It answers the question I had about whether the NYT investigation was any part of the NYAG suit. The answer being that the specifics are different (NYAG has more current data) but the overall finding is the same: a long standing pattern of abuse.

[Rhiannon12866]

3. I was wondering about it too, since Mary Trump talked all about it in her first book.

She was instrumental in getting the legal documents for the reporters since she had access to them at her lawyer's office. Reporter Suzanne Craig originally contacted her, actually showed up at her door, and Mary initially put her off - but she had taken Craig's card, so eventually decided that it was her duty to help expose what she knew.

[Jarqui]

2. A few observations

1. Trump has already tried to settle this case
(claimed at this point in the video):

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Like 'everyone has done it', trying to settle is an admission of guilt to some significant extent.

We already know from Trump invoking the 5th 440 times, Eric 500+ times and accountant Weisselberg 500+ times plus Weisselberg's guilty plea to 15 counts of fraud and tax evasion that that can be used against Trump in the civil case to draw inferences.

So there is little question of significant financial liability to Trump here.

These haven't been discussed as much:

2. Mary Trump is suing for being cheated by Trump out of some of her father's estate.
Not enormous news but this doesn't hurt her cause - it's hurts Trump

3. AG James is recovering public money. But the banks and insurance companies also got cheated. Some may suffer with the statue of limitations. But since her work covers thru to 2021, a bunch will also have legitimate financial claims against Trump to recover their millions, their accounting & legal fees and punitive damages. So it doesn't end with AG James. It is just getting started.

4. Cashflow
Forbes 2020: Donald Trump Has At Least $1 Billion In Debt, More Than Twice The Amount He Suggested
https://www.forbes.com/sites/danalexander/2020/10/16/donald-trump-has-at-least-1-billion-in-debt-more-than-twice-the-amount-he-suggested/?sh=528f4b814330

As the Pulitzer prize winning author pointed out, Trump companies do not make a lot of money (for tax reasons in part).
But he's always been hung up egotistically on how much he's worth. He lobbied Forbes to move him up the list of the wealthiest.
To do that, leveraging to control more asset dollars was something he had to do,

So with the AG comes at him for between $250 mil to $1 billion and the banks and insurance companies get into line, he has a big financial problem.

And a real problem to get any new credit economically.

Plus:

And all of that ignores what could be coming down the pipe at him criminally - for fraud and tax evasion.

The problem with all this for him politically, aside from being perceived as a crook, is a drip, drip, drip of facts in these court cases. It's true stuff because it is evidence given under penalty of perjury.

How does a candidate run in 2024 with all that going on? The primaries start in about 15 months and his legal strategy has been: delay, delay and then delay some more.


So Trump is done. As long as the GOP get the support of his cult, they don't care - they'll be jumping for joy.