I’m a desperate man
Send lawyers, guns, and money
The shit has hit the fan (Warren Zevon)
USA Today posted a pretty interesting take earlier this morning on Trump’s situation. It might or might not explain my question that prompted the article I wrote about what prompted Trump’s astonishing Truth Social outburst/meltdown yesterday but it’s clear the walls are closing in. I’ve often said no matter how bad things sometimes get they can always get worse and when it comes to Trump’s legal problems that proved true. And yes it can get still worse, especially since paying for all the lawyers is getting increasingly problematic for Trump.
It’s well known he’ had been shelling out money for other people’s lawyers starting a long time ago. The January 6 Committee hearing exposed this sleaze. Trump probably thought the worst was over and my guess is that some of those people who were advised by lawyers supposedly representing them but in truth were looking out for Trump’s interests first long ago dropped off the payroll. Trump might be needing some of them back. If they felt underpaid back then, or didn’t get paid at all (this IS Trump we’re talking about) they have serious leverage to get a nice, fat upfront retainer. In a couple of months a case that had mostly dropped out of the news, NY AG Leticia James’ civil case against Trump and the Trump Org. goes to trial. That means either pay up for lawyers for his minions in that case or they will cut deals that will cripple his company.
Then Alvin Bragg came along and hit Trump with the first criminal indictment. Not so many (if any) minions to pay off to keep quiet via paying for their lawyers but Trump still needs a good legal team working up in NYC. And in a city like that even average talent will cost a bundle. If they had any sense at all they asked for hefty upfront retainers. Then in June Special Counsel Jack Smith hit Trump with a National Security case that could be a whole lot broader (and might become so thanks to judge Loose Cannon delaying a trial that could have and should have been held this fall) if Smith decides to file a superseding indictment. However, even if he keeps it simple Trump is stuck paying for lawyers for Walt Nauta and Carlos DeOliveira. He was paying for another one but that guy made like Cassidy Hutchinson and got a lawyer on his own and is now opening up to Smith’s team. One has to wonder how much extra it’s costing Trump after that to keep his other co-defendants in the fold.
Trump has his Jan. 6 case in DC to contend with as well, and a whole new batch of legal fees to worry about. If Georgia was freaking him out before the indictments were handed down and he’s freaked out more since it’s because so many of his co-defendants have their own lawyers, NOT paid for by him. The “flipping” has already started and my prediction is it’s going to snowball. Not just in Georgia but in Trump’s other criminal cases. He simply can’t pay for lawyers for everybody and even if he could some have already taken a cold, hard look at a simple fact. Trump will throw THEM under the bus in a heartbeat. So, just as the IT guy at Mar A Lago decided “no thanks” and has a lawyer who’s only interest is HIM, others will do the same. Or like Rudy G. run to prosecutors (too late) begging for a deal. Or like Mark Meadow’s try to get cute and say just enough to help burn Trump but not so much as to put himself in trouble. (Lest we forget, Manafort tried that and wound up convicted)
But Trump is rich you say, even if he’s not nearly as rich as he claimed to be. And he raised all that money. Those are valid things to point let. Let’s address the second one first. There’s a difference between net-worth and cash on hand or even the ability to convert assets into cash. In theory Trump is worth a couple billion or so but I for one doubt it’s even that. If the veil of secrecy around his finances is fully penetrated and revealed my guess is that what he actually owns is well under a billion. Still not chump change but again, everyone knows Trump is in trouble. He will NOT get top dollar for any asset he tries to sell. Not even close. If he’d very lucky he’ll get better than “fire sale” price but he’ll have to accept humiliating prices to sell to raise ready cash.
That brings us to all that money Trump raised for his PACs which is why it’s worth your time to read the USA Today article I linked to. At the very beginning it makes the point:
His key fund has spent nearly all of the more than $150 million it raised, and is sitting on less than $4 million, according to the latest numbers available. He’s already dug into his fund for 2024 ads, and borrowed money to post bail in Georgia. And some of his allies are begging for donations, saying he won’t pony up.
USA Today includes some interesting thoughts from a white collar DC lawyer:
Sara Kropf, a partner at a small criminal defense firm in Washington, D.C., said the hourly rate for these types of lawyers at large firms in her area is around $2,000. In addition to paying them to go to trial, they need to go through discovery documents, filing pretrial motions, and preparing witnesses, she said.
“Easily, easily, within the millions of dollars,” Kropf said. “And that’s for each separate case. And we’re talking about four indictments. You’re easily in the tens of millions of dollars. It’s kind of staggering, honestly, to think about how much he would be spending.”
Right after that the article jumps into a section titled Is Trump Broke? (I used bold type just as the article did.) It’s quite a section filled with a lot of detailed, amounts of money shifted around but I’ll included one last section for you here so you get the general sense:
Trump’s main account that pays for legal fees, Save America, doesn’t have that kind of money. It’s spent almost all of the $154.6 million it raised since the 2020 election and had $3.7 million in the bank at the end of June.
The PAC spent it biggest chunk of money, $60 million, making transfers to Trump’s 2024 campaign super PAC, Make America Great Again, Inc. But in May and June, as his legal entanglements grew, that super PAC refunded $12.3 million back to Save America. Without those transfers, Save America would’ve been in debt.
I find that last sentence to be particularly revealing. I don’t want to push fair use over the line, so if you want more detail go to the link at the beginning of this.
My point however is that for all his boasts about fundraising Trump has already resorted to having to shift tens of millions of dollars between PACs to manage so far. Yet he’s still got a long, long ways to go and tens of millions yet to shell out for just his own legal fees. He simply can’t afford to keeping paying for lawyers for people who can flip on him. Not to mention some are already realizing the likelihood of 1) Trump winding up being a convicted felon who will in the process of getting their take them down with him, and 2) He’s not going to be President again, and it’s highly unlikely a GOPer will get elected either which means no pardon will be forthcoming – and that in GA they are screwed to. Because Gov. Kemp not only doesn’t have the power to issue a state one, the board that does isn’t likely to do so either! As I said, I think it’s a good bet that the “flip on Trump snowball” that’s already started down the hill is going to get “Bigly Yuge” meaning Trump’s headed into the abyss.
It gets even better though. The FEC might be a toothless tiger when it comes to questions about legality of the way he’s shifted money around between PACs, but putting more and more of his money raised into trying to avoid prison has another consequence. He’s not President anymore and can’t abuse the taxpayers for the expenses of traveling around to campaign! Nope. He’s got to cover that on his own and just keeping “Trump Force One” flying costs a small fortune per flight hour. And venues/communities are increasingly asking for money to cover the costs of his campaign events UPFRONT. Trump might steamroll to becoming the presumptive nominee on Super Tuesday but he’s still got to campaign. With conservative mega donors refusing to back him (say it with me now – brokered convention) Trump’s not going to have the money he needs to campaign.
I’d be loving this if it weren’t for all the hellish ugliness Trump will put our country through but I’m actually starting to believe “Consequences” finally has Trump by his testicles. And is squeezing. Hard!
Mr Trump is finding out that just deserts is not large helpings of chocolate cake.
And he’s surprised by this because it hasn’t happened before.
What could be causing Trump-O to pinch off straight pins with his arse is Politico is reporting Jack Smith is investigating illegal money transfers between Trump’s Save America PAC and Trump Super PAC Make America Great Again Inc., also raising money under false pretenses (The Big Lie) is a crime, and those monies must be given back to the original donor or forfeited.
Here is a short article on that with a link to the Politico investigations……
https://www.salon.com/2023/08/09/might-have-to-give-those-millions-back-legal-experts-say-jack-smith-could-seize-pac-cash/
*turns thumbscrew a little bit tighter*
From your mouth to the powers that be Denis!
Lawyers and judges and debts – Oh My!
And the hits just keep on coming with accumulating legal expenses… This Wednesday, September 6th, Trumplethinskin The Coward testifies at his Deposition in Miami Court with his hired attorney – Alejandro Brito – before Michael Cohen & his attorney in his $500 million lawsuit against Michael Cohen. Ka-Ching $$$! Last time Drumpf had to testify before attorneys in a deposition in April for the NY Civil Case/Tish James, Drumpf was questioned for 8 hours. No reason to believe this will be any shorter. Lots & lots of billable hours. The very same day Sept. 6th – Benedict Donald will be arraigned in absentia while another of his paid attorneys – Steven Sadow – is present in Fulton County Court. Ka-Ching!! Ka-Ching!! Billable hours!!
Don the Con in the past has constantly bragged about winning lawsuits, and also making the other side pay through the nose in attorneys fees till they drop the lawsuit. These mounting legal expenses are overdue KARMA against Don the Con whose business model designed by Weisselberg and implemented for decades was to hire small businesses to construct his buildings & casinos, then never pay them and then sue them for breach of contract. He ended up destroying dozens of small businesses and harming hundreds of families whose livelihoods depended upon their businesses in the NY/NJ area. He acted as a predator & a parasite. The whole thing was a scam. He knew the small businesses could not afford to pay years of legal expenses to retrieve the labor hours & and cost of materials stolen by Trump.
With the chances of Trumpelthinskin increasing day-by-day of filing for Bankruptcy Protection, how soon before there will be ZERO banks left willing lend him or his corporations more money to keep his businesses afloat? How soon before he defaults on existing scheduled payments and the banks with outstanding loans will be in a rush to be the first to each Call In The Loan to minimize their own losses so they may become Secured Creditors instead of Unsecured Creditors in Bankruptcy Court?
Trump’s hollow house of shuffling cards based upon overvalued properties is on the precipice of collapsing. As they say…The bigger they come the harder they fall!
Who knows? There might be yet another Trump indictment out there. I sometimes wonder if part of the bug up Loose Cannon’s butt about Smith continuing grand jury work both in FL and DC is she’s gotten word from Trump’s lawyers (yes, such ex parte communication is way the hell out of bounds) that they fear another indictment in another jurisdiction might be in the works. Or a superseding one in her own Trump case since by putting it off (in theory) until May of next year she’s given Smith time to develop a broader case to slam Trump with. What it all means if MORE legal fees for Trump!
Trial by Invoice.