Trump is in deep you-know-what. Nasty brown and smelly brown organic waste and he needs money in a hurry. Ready cash. NOW. Having a TV show saved him before and I’m thinking he believes it can save him now. Hence the title pic, a meme of my own making I might add. So what the hell am I talking about? Let’s see…
Am I the only one surprised there was no epic rant on Truth Social late yesterday evening or even this morning? Often the “best” ones are late at night when his handlers are either asleep or too exhausted to put up with Trump’s primal screams so they give in and let him rant. So, in the wake of the E. Jean Carroll verdict and anticipation of far bigger award handed down by judge Engoron this week I figured Trump would express a whole new level of “WAAAAHHHHH!!!! WHY MEEEEEE!!!! WITCH HUNT!!!!” Instead, both last night and this morning it was crickets. I think it’s because he’s been busy, frantically consulting on how to come up with a LOT of money and fast. He’s so desperately seeking money he doesn’t even have time to waste banging out a few all caps rants!
Trump has to cough up a bunch of money and right away. He doesn’t have it. Not at least in a form he can come up with in a hurry. Time has a brief article addressing Trump’s financial state. Sure, he’s got assets he can sell but not for as much as he thinks they’re worth. And smelling blood in the water those who might buy one or more of them isn’t about to pay actual fair market value.
If you’ve been watching the news about Trump during the recent Carroll proceedings and the aftermath some interesting things have come to light, at least for me. Even now that I’ve hit retirement years I still love learning new things and I’ve recently learned something about the law and what happens when someone suddenly finds themselves on the hook for damages from a civil lawsuit. None of the options are attractive. A person can a) pay up, however grudgingly and move on or b) appeal the award. Option b is virtually a non-starter unless the opposing counsel or the judge commits major screwups. The best one can hope for is a reduction in the amount of damages they have to pay. Also, in civil court a person can’t use ineffectiveness of counsel as a basis for appeal. THEY picked their own lawyer after all. If they stuck with that lawyer(s) all the way to the end, well the old saying about making your own bed and now you have to lay in it comes to mind.
Still, if he doesn’t want to pay up (even if he had the money which as I’ve said he doesn’t despite his claims) Trump can appeal, if only to get the amount of damages reduced. I already pointed out it’s unlikely he’ll get anywhere in the Carroll case. In fact, one thing pundits talked about even before the verdict was that if the jury really socked it to him like the Georgia jury did to his onetime pal (and lawyer) Rudy it might open the door to wasting a year or so of time in appeals court deciding if the amount was “fair.”
However, there seems to be agreement that the Carroll jury came up with a measured, reasonable amount given the circumstances. As for judge Engoron, even if he doesn’t grant the $370 million AG James is requesting it will likely be for at least a couple hundred million, perhaps in the 250-300 million range. Arguing bias on judge Engoron’s part likely won’t fly. Engoron has gone out of his way to be fair to Trump, so before the end of this week Trump’s going to be out three to four hundred MILLION dollars. If not more.
What I’ve recently learned is that if someone in Trump’s predicament wants to appeal they have to guarantee ability to pay if they tell the court they intend to appeal. What I hear pundits saying is that there’s three options for Trump. First, he can put the money in escrow pending the outcome of the appeal. (take a moment to laugh) Again, I’ve already said he can’t do that because he doesn’t have an extra few hundred million to spare. Second, he can work out a deal with the court to provide partial payment and prove he can come up with the rest. That’s more complicated because let’s face it, given his history what judge(s) are going to trust that down the road Trump will, after losing his appeal just pay out the rest of what he owes?
The third thing he can do is post a bond for the awarded damages that will guarantee payment. That can get complicated too because it can be a partial payout upfront (on the assumption the amount of damages will be reduced) and a bond for the rest (fat chance on that partial payout!), put part of the amount in escrow and post bond for the rest or just pay through the nose to post bond for the whole amount. Trump’s problem with bond is finding a sucker who would put up that kind of money? At least anywhere in the time Trump will have (less than thirty days) to figure something out? And Trump might not have even thirty days to “cut a deal.” Oh my…
What about his legal PAC you ask? Well, first of all unless (and we’ll know by Wed. when his latest filing has to be posted) he’s gotten a “bigly” flood of donations he doesn’t have 250-300 million there. Not to mention he’s got all manner of OTHER legal expenses he has to cough up money for damned near every week. Or day. It gets better however. Trump can’t send out a general fundraising appeal for his legal PAC to cover this. Nope. The pundits have made a point of yet another delightful bit of new legal knowledge I’ve just acquired.
If Trump wants to raise money for these new legal damages he has to specifically say what the donated money will go to in his fundraising appeals!
I don’t know about you but I think having to do that is something that terrifies Trump. He’s made such a big deal about how rich he is. In MAGA minds he’s a tycoon that could buy Gilligan’s Island’s Thurston Howell III for tip money. In MAGA minds for a guy like Trump they’d think it was outrageous he’d have to pay that kind of money to Carroll and/or the State of New York, BUT they’d think “Well hell, he’s so rich he’ll hardly miss it.” Having Trump begging THEM to pay these damages might not make the scales fall from their eyes but it will sure as hell loosen them. To the point they could pop out like old “hard” contact lenses were infamous for. Trump knows this. Given the amount of urgency the fundraising appeal(s) would have even a MAGA goober might sense desperation and begin to wonder WTF is going on. Why Trump is begging, even pleading for them to sell their possessions, even their “Monster Trucks” and send him the money NOW. TODAY.
Yes, he’s still got screaming, slobbering MAGAs that show up at his rallies but he also can see with his own eyes the venues are a lot smaller. And even then not always full. AND he can see people walking out long before he’s done telling the same lies they’ve heard before. He doesn’t say anything as he watches them go. Too many people are walking out so what’s he going to do? Tell those who are staying “Hundreds of people are walking out – STOP THEM” and start a mini-riot? When you factor that in it’s easy to see why Trump would have reservations about even hinting that he needs several hundred million and FAST (a month at most) from them. Because HE can’t come up with that himself! Yet for all his efforts MAGA ain’t what it was back in 2016. Plus, he’s already milked them for an awful lot already. The last thing Trump can afford (literally) right now is for MAGAs to start looking at how much they’ve already given him, their own bank accounts and wondering how much more he expects them to give?
It’s a short step from there to “You know what? I’ve already given him all I can afford. He’s rich. He can handle this himself.” And that my friends is right on the edge of the “Ok, I’ll probably vote for him but that’s it. He’s always talked about how rich he is and I’m sick of him hitting me up for money three or four times a day.” Many of these folks have been so hollowed out by Trump they are dry husks that can blow right over the edge of that cliff into “Screw him. He LIED to me.” Like any experienced con-man Trump always weighs the odds on how far he can push the con. Again I say he’s not only worried but terrified he’s past the point where the whole thing collapses. Or that any attempt to get one last bit out of the con will bring it all down.
Trump’s “brand” is the image he’s built of a hugely successful businessman with money to burn. He’s more than sensitive to people saying otherwise. As the linked article notes he dropped off the Forbes 400 list and he was mightily pissed. Then there’s this. Trump as I wrote yesterday doesn’t have much of a sense of humor. That’s why some years ago I was surprised when he allowed himself to be the subject of one of those “Roasts.” The old Friar’s Club roasts got replaced by a rougher, cruder version but Trump wanted the attention I guess. Plus, like the original after enduring the jabs from the celebrity panel the “roastee” gets the last word. The roastee also gets to set ground rules. As pointedly personal as the newer version gets, a person can make a list of “NO” topics. Trump had only one “NO” – none of those taking the podium could make jokes questioning his wealth!
What all this means is that Trump has a huge, “YUGE” cash flow problem and no ready way to deal with it. Lest we forget, although it’s not been talked about for a while (even Murster here on Politizoom hasn’t mentioned it in a while) Trump has been facing balloon payments on close to four hundred millions of dollars of bank loans in the first part of 2024! He needs cash and a steady cash flow and he needs it now. Every bit as much as he needs to get back in the WH to make his criminal legal problems go away.
Hence the TV show idea. If it weren’t for NBC and Mark Burnett giving Trump that stupid “reality” show all those years Trump wouldn’t have had the kind of celebrity status that would have allowed him to become a Presidential candidate. A big fat TV contract for a new Trump TV show would be a “twofer” for Trump. Even Fox doesn’t carry his rallies live anymore. He might have gotten a billion dollars in free advertising (literally) between Fox and other networks carrying his rallies live back in 2016 but 2020 was another matter. He’s going to get even less this time around than in 2020. His own TV show would allow him regular prime time access into people’s homes. It would be a regular campaign event for him and in his mind at least a big ratings hit that would put boatloads of cash, actual money he can turn right around and spend into his pocket.
I’d be willing to bet he’s asked Hannity to help him pitch the notion to Murdoch, who probably laughed it off when Trump tried it on his own. Murdoch could of course easily advance Trump the money (against future earnings) in the form of a loan, even one that large. The problem of course would be selling the ads to air the show. Not to mention Trump won’t STFU about 2020 and the Big Lie. Fox has already shelled out 787 million to Dominion for airing Trump’s lie fueled grievances. They are also facing several times (or more) that amount from SmartMatic. Giving Trump a show of his own where HE is the one directly spouting more of the same would be Fox signing itself over to SmarMatic and getting out of the news business, at least in this country!
Yep, Trump is screwed three ways to Sunday and he knows it. So as I said he doesn’t have time to do his primal screams on Truth Social at the moment. He’s on conference calls with the infamous Trump Org CFO Alan Weisselberg, bankers, Putin pals, anybody with gobs of money who’d at least take his calls. Because the clock is ticking. Tick-Tock, Tick-Tock Tick-Tock motherf**ker.
I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it.
Remember when those caught short in 1929 took to the window ledges? Perhaps everyone now discovering this emperor has no clothes may be his? One can only hope.
And, his buddy Putin is also bleeding cash in Ukraine (in addition to thousands of his own soldier’s blood) and can’t (or won’t) bail him out. I expect TFG is pleading with MBS as we speak.
I agree about Pootie and the oligarchs. They’ve already given vast sums to Trump and have no hope of getting anything back from him whether repayment or future favors. I honestly believe the Secret Service (not the asshats on his personal detail) has worked out a threat assessment and deterrence measures for a Spetnaz assault/kidnapping from the sea off Mar A Lago. Real special ops stuff with rubber boats coming in to about a mile offshore and divers using sleds towed along that can be flooded to operate underwater to take the team right up to the shore. Kidnap Trump, slip back into the ocean to rendezvous with the rubber boats, dump the sleds and haul ass out past the twelve mile limit to a non-descript ship that only looks like a clunker. That would then haul ass out to fifty miles or so and transfer Trump to a Russian sub that would take it’s sweet ass time getting back home. (So as not to make enough noise to get tracked by U.S. subs) I have a feeling Pootie and some of his pals that have kept Trump afloat might want to see him in some rather unpleasant circumstances. Trump might be promising he’ll be President again and hand over Ukraine and who knows what else BUT these people aren’t completely ignorant of the political lay of the land over here. And, as you say they’ve got enough problems right now to also be pulling off the kind of multi-faceted operation they did in 2016.
As for MBS and others in the middle east? They know our politics better than Russia and how unlikely it is Trump will be able to do anything for them ever again. I think they came to that conclusion years ago, and instead invested in his son-in-law who lest we forget got a copy of EVERY Presidential Daily Briefing Trump did and no doubt photocopied every goddamned classified document he got his hands on! Jared no doubt sold off plenty already to get the billions of help they’ve bestowed on him once Trump was out of office. And HE is the one with the goodies that can give them more. So I think for places who’s money is from oil, Trump is what in that business a “dry hole” and sure as hell not worth hundreds of millions of dollars in bailout money.
“Chy-ner?” Forget about it. Same with North Korea. Trump is well and truly fucked if he’s counting on foreign help these days.
So he’s frantically trying to con somebody into putting up a bond. Good luck with that, especially with criminal trials looming. That leaves selling off golf properties but at well below actual market rates and given some of them are overseas or it might take finding an overseas legitimate buyer that takes time unless he sells at true fire-sale rates. Which won’t get him the money he needs. Same problem with his other assets. He doesn’t actually own most of the buildings that still have his name plastered on them – only the rights to “manage” them and selling that off to others would amount to peanuts and old & stale ones at that when he needs a giant gourmet pecan pie.
Add in part of the verdict this week won’t just be a straight up financial penalty but loss of the ability to do business in NY State and there goes the Trump Org. – right into receivership and a bankrupcty court will wind up selling it off to pay creditors. Real ones. Not his Russian pals. I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised given his obvious poor health if news breaks in the next week or so that Trump’s been rushed to the hospital having suffered a “bigly” heart attack or stroke.
Seems a very rational argument!
” there are more things in heaven and earth than dreamt of in your philosophy Horatio” Hamlet
I see the MAGAs are bigly into the nefarious NFL for letting the Chiefs win because of that Democrat Taylor Swift!!! They’ll be too busy with that this week. Plus the Clown Car Truck Convoy to support Gov. Abbott – just what that jerk needs, doesn’t he have enough wheels?
tRump’s new TV Show could be those 2:00 a.m. pillow commercials…just sayin’… 🙂
Maybe, and I know this is a stretch, it has finally sunk in that running his mouth is what got him that huge fine. Call me the eternal optimist.
I figured he’d just keep yapping and run up more money owed to Ms. Carroll in more defamation trials thereby beggaring himself. It occurs to me that in attempting to come up with the 80+ million he now owes her he’ll have to start unloading assets and were I an interested buyer I’d give him pennies on the dollar or as close to that as possible-he could be close to financial ruin just from these two judgements. That really would be karma. Prison time might trouble dingleberry but being poor, well poor-ish (he’d still have his pension I guess)? OMG he’d go insane in short order. Watching t tower, and especially watching his apartment, go from his ownership to someone else’s (and they would surely re-decorate)? That would be the straw that sends him from merely sounding demented to actually going there.
Maybe his buddy can gift him free pillows to cry on!
He is screwed, sideways. Even if he tries to sell his “Mona Lisa” properties to pay damages he would have to clear the sale with his financial monitor and, I’m willing to bet, all are leveraged to the hilt, plus he probably has more borrowed against them then their actual fair-market value.
Maybe he can hold another $100k per plate Mar-A-Lardo fundraiser like he did for his “buddy” Rudy. He may get more than three people (literally how many showed up for the Ghoul Man).
He’s fast approaching that place on the pavement (outside one of his former towers) where he won’t even have 2 pennies to rub together. He’s so preoccupied with that and conjuring another echo-chambered squark he’s can’t expend any delusional reptilian energy to counter this painful truther, being the LP’s “Verdict” which peels another layer off his vile, contrived and hollow entitled existence. See:
What’s that distant swooshing sound I’m hearing? Oh, I know, it’s vulture fund managers circling above Mar-a-Lago.
no way he could get a tv show without dropping out of the race