I've been thinking about this. Trump could let the March 25th deadline arrive and force James to act. Let her seize Trump Tower. How will that look? How can she manage the place? What will people think? Is he calling her bluff?
The 91 felony indictments helped Trump in the polls. His popularity could skyrocket if James confiscates his tower. The political value might exceed the half a billion dollars in wealth it will cost.
In any case, it would be chaotic. One "insider" said:
People will stop doing business in New York. No one will take the risk, and lenders are now spooked. The real estate market is already a disaster, with office buildings worth a fraction of what they were once worth, and there are metastasizing effects when a large part of the city’s budget is from real estate.
Some Trump haters might love the idea of seizing Trump Tower and selling it cheap. It would reinforce the perception that Trump had overstated the value of his property. It would humiliate him. But attempts to humiliate Trump haven't been working out as planned. It's complicated, predicting those "metastasizing effects" — in the NYC real estate market and in national politics.
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Some Trump haters might love the idea of seizing Trump Tower and selling it cheap.
They may have no choice but to sell it cheap. I can see the appeal for some to own Trump Tower but with the real estate market where it is right now AND the legal case that might make Trump Tower available for someone to acquire [from the city] might result in a suppressed price anyway. One also has to be very careful of the restrictions/requirements that the city would likely make part of the purchase requirements.
Just can't see a lot of "top dollar" takers.
Trump Tower is located in the heart of Manhattan. If it gets sold for cheap, even at a forced sale discount, that says something pretty catastrophic for New York City commercial real estate.
Confiscate it, rename it The Venezuelan Tower, and house immigrants in it on the NYC taxpayers’ dime. Problem solved.
"I've been thinking about this. Trump could let the March 25th deadline arrive and force James to act. Let her seize Trump Tower. How will that look? How can she manage the place? What will people think? Is he calling her bluff?"
I thought the same. Force James to play her next card.
Let the games continue!
So, could this be the instance of where the dog chasing the car actually catches the car without having previously asked the question "What do I do with it?"
Imagine how many migrants seeking sanctuary could be housed in a confiscated/seized Trump Tower! Win/win for New York City!
Will the state be held responsible for the damage they do? Will they be responsible for fulling the lease terms of the units in Trump Tower?
This could be fun to watch play out.
Who is the buyer and what price?
The thing many people don't get is that the value of real estate (especially high end commercial real estate) is very subjective and fact dependent.
If the Appellate Division doesn't stop this, big mistake.
This case is reversed and dismissed. And the appellate court knows that.
and lenders are now spooked
I'm not as close to the banks as I used to be but the fact we aren't already seeing a bigger squawk at the actions of New York courts and pols leads me to believe the major institutions are convinced (at least for now) the actions won't merit a halt to doing business. Then again I would have expected all the retailers to have departed NYC by now. Guess they can all still offset the risk in higher costs (at least for now)...
I have been saying "bring it on, myself." What does Trump want with NYC anymore. Let NYC cough up cold hard cash when they finally lose at the Supreme Court.
This is funny too: A senior executive at NBC Universal just tweeted and then deleted that Barron Trump had turned 18 today, and so was now fair game.
Who wouldn't want these people in charge of every aspect of our lives?
I mentioned this the other day as well. Managing such huge buildings takes expertise and money. NYC doesn’t have any extra cash liquidity for this. Plus, this drops her into the same scenario she indicted him for, if she (NYC) tried to leverage the bldg as collateral in any way. I’d love to see her humiliated and shamed for what’s she’s done with her AG power.
Justice will not be served until the inbred moron Letitia James is tarred, feathered and run out of the state on a rail.
Until then, it’s all a distraction that attempts to provide cover for the Left’s excremental criminal activities and President Old Yeller’s
full-blown dementia.
I LITERALLY want a divorce. I have nothing in common with democrat cities or people anymore. That democrats can cheer this travesty, the democrat media cheer this travesty and somehow believe that a 500million payout to APPEAL this travesty of a decision makes me realise I have nothing in common or will ever have anything in common with democrat.
"Trump could let the March 25th deadline arrive and force James to act."
Oh, yeah. Or, he could sprout wings and fly to the Moon. How, exactly, are you imagining that Trump might prevent March 25th from arriving? Or stop that "strong Black woman" with a sketchy AA legal education from grossly abusing her authority? Take a look around. Letitia James. Fani Willis. Kim Foxx. Ketanji Brown Jackson. Marilyn Mosby. Kimberly Gardner. Letting stupid black women into law school was a great idea. The function of the law is to protect the right to loot. Diversity is our strength! We can always build more cities.
Don't worry, we'll only do this to Trump...but it's not political!
Is Trump Tower making any money for Trump? If she seizes it and sells it fast, James would get some credit for offloading an underperforming property at a small profit for the city (or her office). The buyer, who would likely already be chosen by James and her staff for honest graft reasons, would share in this ganga deal with selected New Yorkers.
Dog catches car?
I think we will find out how it will play, but the real question is at what point does one judge “who won”. If you demand instant gratification, then I think it will appear Letitia James won by humiliating Trump and taking his misbegotten gains. If you see a longer play where the results take time to develop, you’ll see a different New York where real estate value has fallen, businesses have left, and the military has displaced the police to provide security. Trump may have to give up his property in New York, but everyday New Yorkers will be forced to have their possessions searched as they travel in public, because if you have done nothing wrong then you’ll have nothing to hide.
But attempts to humiliate Trump haven't been working out as planned.
I posted about this last night in the open thread. I think their optics are turning to shit. If Trump's properties are seized by the state it will crash the NYC real estate market which is already suffering from Covid and remote work. They shouldn't have laughed and rolled their eyes at Kevin O'Leary.
On the bright side; at least it's show how those who consider themselves our moral and intellectual superiors aren't as smart as they think they are. I suspect that their intent was to render Trump cash poor and ham-string his campaign. They didn't realize that most really wealthy people's net worth is not liquid. I'm betting that a half billion dollars in cash would be a stretch for Musk and Bezos, much less Trump.
"Take a look around. Letitia James. Fani Willis. Kim Foxx. Ketanji Brown Jackson. Marilyn Mosby. Kimberly Gardner. Letting stupid black women into law school was a great idea."
I would add aggressive. Letting stupid and aggressive women with a nasty temperment ... not such a good idea.
Recent past indicates that the political value could be immense, as would be the harm to NY and NYC.
I am surprised to see no discussion from legal scholars about the Due Process issues surrounding what appear to be excessive civil fines.
The applied fines may not satisfy Constitutional Due Process scrutiny, and requiring bond prior to appeal is even more suspect (although I would allow that a bond requirement prior to appeal on other grounds may be less of an issue).
It'd be interesting to know if the new owner (New York state) might be saddled with licensing obligations to pay Trump for use of the Trump brand and trademarks. I would not be surprised if Trump has an arrangement that disproportionately earns money from IP licensing (a setup to diminish tax liability that is not unusual for some other types of businesses).
It'd be a damn shame if New Yorkers couldn't get those delicious, Trump Tower taco salads on Cinco de Mayo.
The left really is turning into Captain Ahab in their quest to get Trump. And seizing Trump Tower will play out like the moment when the whale turns on the ship. Seizing the Tower will draw attention to the real estate crisis and not only in New York. Rentals crash, more leave the cities, doom loops set in. Comes then the Dem convention. Dem leadership purged in chaotic scenes. Participation by cannibal Haitians flown in on PAROLE program denied. Michelle Obama forced to accept Dem nomination but disappears shortly thereafter, re-emerging in Peoria. "I liked them," she says of Peoria couple who found her walking along a road. "She just kept say: 'I won't go to The White House, I won't, don't let them find me,' " the Peoria couple reported. "We said, 'don't worry, the White House doesn't know where we are. They haven't found us since Reagan was President. Anyhow Don Lemon was chosen as the Dim candidate. You're OK.'"
I see an outlet for NYC in the Detroit model, where lefite companies show their bona fides with token billions in investment, subsidized of course with helicopter money from Congress and US Treasury and truckloads of why aren't you whiners more grateful to us...
This is not going to scare off any of the players in NYC, the point is that "this is just for Trump, and BTW, any other credible opponents to our absolute rule," but it will play well for Trump with not only his supporters, but fair-minded (read swing) voters everywhere in the country.
All the Trump fanbois' wearing their blue dresses in these comments answers your question, Althouse.
The Palestine/Gaza supporters are forcing Democrats to split from the Jews.
The anti-Trump DAs are forcing Democrats to split from Wall St. Jews.
When the Jews do split from the Democrats.....oooooohhhhhh! Bottomless regret and no hope.
Re: Steve Wilson:
So, could this be the instance of where the dog chasing the car actually catches the car without having previously asked the question "What do I do with it?"
Yes, but the prosecutor here doesn't care about the property or city commercial real estate. That's not her problem. Her goal was Get Trump!, and mission accomplished, regardless of what happens on appeal. Secondarily, all she or the other prosecutors biting at Trump's ankles really need to do is tie him down enough to help Biden win in November. Depriving him of his New York headquarters helps achieve those political goals. If the government turns his flagship property into a shithole in the interim, I'm sure she wouldn't mind.
Sure, let her seize the building, and run the damn thing, as we slide into becoming Venezuela of the north.
Commercial leases are upside down. Offices are emptying out, businesses are simply moving at the end of the lease, or before the end of the lease. They cannot get new companies to take over spaces. Office vacancies around the country are skyrocketing. It's 35.9% in San Francisco. It's 22.7% in Manhattan. 23.8% in Chicago. These are all records. And with every few months, more notes come due to the building owners, who have massive amounts owed on these buildings and have to figure out a way to pay their notes.
Let her confiscate his properties. Let the nation, indeed the world, see the Government of New York confiscating well known private properties as it tries to jail the owner- the #1 political opponent of the current administration. Sounds so...Maoist of them.
As opposed to secession, is there any way we can kick NYC out of the Union?
Time was that people mocked rural America for their occasional all-powerful country judges. Now you can get a $400 million speeding ticket in NYC.
New York has becomes the world's biggest short. Let James buy the call....
I saw a shrewd analysis of why it's decidedly in Trump's overall best interest to call the bluff of this crazy Stalinist bitch. Everything from conserving liquidity for legal fees, to expediting the appeals process in Federal court, to the deductible capital losses a forced sale would trigger. I'll post a link if I can find it again.
can descendants of tribe that sold Manhattan now take it back [and resell]
No one is going to buy this building from New York State until the final appeals of the court decision are rendered in the favor of New York State. They won't even be able to sell it for a dollar. Ask yourself this- would you buy a house that had no title search done?
When NYC tries to value Trump Tower at $650 Million and succeeds, what does that do to James' case? If Trump's RE values were CORRECT, what does that do to the case? And if the value is pennies on the dollar because of the case, what does that do to ALL of NYC real estate?
I'm not as close to the banks as I used to be but the fact we aren't already seeing a bigger squawk at the actions of New York courts and pols leads me to believe the major institutions are convinced (at least for now) the actions won't merit a halt to doing business.
You haven't thought this all the way through. We are living under Third World "kill the chicken to scare the monkey" governance now. Nobody with anything to lose in New York is going to go on the record against Big Mama Tish. Their actions over the next year or two will speak for themselves. Any entity with any sense at all is looking for the fastest, quietest way to unwind their New York holdings and head for the exits, without making a fuss that would attract the attention of the Inquisition.
So let's see - a prospective buyer has the chance to get the property, possibly subject to having the sale unwound if Trump's appeals are successful, and possibly ending up in court tussles with the President of the United States.
Who wouldn't pay top dollar for that?
Donald Trump has been found to have obtained ill-gotten gains from banks and insurers through illegal or unethical business transactions as a result of a civil lawsuit in Manhattan's Supreme Court, which must be refunded (disgorged) with appropriate interest to the people.
It is of no consequence as to what Trump supporters believe, Que sera, sera. Trump pays the disgorgement, wins an appeal, or faces asset seizures on March 25.
Seizures will involve changing the property titles on unincumbered assets, such as Trump's triplex in Trump Tower. New York will then fire-sale these assets on the open market. Bank accounts, financial instruments, and properties will be in the control of the court until the disgorement is fully paid with interest.
On seizing it, can she just turn around and sell it? For pennies on the dollar? I think that's the plan for Mar a Lago.
More going on than it appears. Trump’s attorneys just filed a motion with the Court, with a maybe 15,000 page attachment. One of the points they make is that the bond is essentially impossible for anyone to make. About the only way to get such a huge bond is to have a $billion$ in cash lying around. Elon Musk, and a couple of our largest companies might be able to do it. But no one else. Why not allow Trump to put up his NY properties as collateral? Because the judge wanted to screw Trump, pure and simple. And some have theorized that the judge’s greed and severe TDS is going to bite him in his ass. Requiring a cash bond, of that size, when no one in the world is willing to fund it, even with more than sufficient collateral, is plain vindictive. Let me repeat that - they introduced sworn testimony that no one in the world would or could post a bond of that size, regardless of collateral. Ordering that bond, knowing that Trump, regardless of wealth, couldn’t pay it, is eminently unreasonable.
If I remember correctly, Trump Tower is at the SW corner of Central Park, and is a combination of ground floor restaurants/businesses, commercial business offices, and residences. But, just look at all the variance in the opinions here ! It's a 'failed property' (on Central Park !) - etc. etc.
I hope it gets seized. Let's all F*ck around and Find Out, and get it out of our system.
Dave Begley said...
Who is the buyer and what price?
A real lawyer wants to know! It doesn't matter. Trump Tower, BTW, is mostly condos that cannot be seized.
I would assume that the city would be responsible for paying the salaries or Trump Tower employees. If it were me, I'd give them all enormous raises on March 24.
Deadbeat scumbag continues lifelong pattern of not paying the debts he's incurred. Seize that shit and sell it for pennies on the dollar and then keep selling his shit until his debts are paid. Easy-peasy.
@tim in vermont, 10:16 says: "This is funny too: A senior executive at NBC Universal just tweeted and then deleted that Barron Trump had turned 18 today, and so was now fair game."
810,000 views; 868 likes; 142 re-posts
Decency. Maybe it explains that whole 'ratings' problem.
Oh please - taking Trump Tower away from Trump will be a fever dream come true for the a-hole fascist left.
They will smash the Trump Tower sign - like a pack of rioting Nazis.
Unfortunate that it appears Chubb was spooked by the bad publicity from the SDNY bond. That would have saved NYAG from egg on her face. No way she is going to seize Trump real estate while appeal pending. At most will protect state from bankruptcy by securing the jydgment.
The left will steal it from Trump and tear it down.
and tax payers will pay for it.
(In reality - housing their illegal immigrants would at least be humane.)
If I were in Trump's shoes I don't think I'd much careif they seized Trump Tower or any of his other holdings. I assume that his children are all taken care of already with holdings elsewhere or based on their own accumulated wealth. Melania is surely taken care of too. It really does play much better for him as a victim I suppose.
It’s standard practice for American insurance companies to not accept illiquid assets as security for these types of judgements.
What is lost in the discussion is that no major U.S. bank would/will lend to Trump. This has been a reality for years, and it was Deutsche that jumped in the void. So, if the U.S. I’m banks would not make Trump a secured loan, why is it surprising that no one will make issue a bond, which would likely have to be secured by a second mortgage on a series of properties.
Perhaps it's because he has a decades-long reputation of stiffing people and screwing creditors?
The forced disposition of his real estate might trigger two different responses. Anti-Trumpers will hope it shows Trump voters that their emperor has no clothes. Pro-Trump supporters will see this as more evidence of political collusion and “lawfare” applied hypocritically to their champion. The latter aren’t going to change that view so no harm really
He cheats at golf and doesn't pay his bills.
Regardless of every other sin this con-artist of a man gets away with, those two are enough to condemn his moral standing.
A lot of comments regarding Trumps NYC building(s) being sized by James. I'm betting James will seize Mar-A-Lago first.
She want's it to hurt.
Let's be honest. Trump is often just winging things. However, Trump is really good at winging things and he generally has excellent instincts. You can never really know for sure what he is trying to accomplish. Sometimes he doesn't know either.
As for James, she is as corrupt as they come and not all that bright as best I can tell. If she can do something stupid that will undermine her efforts, there is a strong probability she will do so.
New York is stupid enough to seize the real estate of Trump or anyone else, turn around and sell it for peanuts in a sweetheart deal, lease it out for major cash from some idiot and then destroy the value of the property while the Courts stay in limbo until all is ruined and then they'll step in and announce that this was a wrong and order the State to return the property and then the owner gets to sue in Court for damages to the property.
It would be faster and more just all around to just shoot the people who think they can steal other people's stuff using the Courts as their bludgeon.
I wonder about the reputational risk that a private buyer might face. How will they be seen in the real estate investment and general business communities? How might purchasing Trump's property impact their ability to execute other projects, especially outside of NYC?
The whole thing has a certain character to it that seems lifted from an Ayn Rand novel.
The director of Dune is trying to walk back his portrayal of Paul Atreides, suggesting that he is evil. Well, shall we compare Muad'Dib to the story of Trump?
The emperor strips his family of their source of wealth.
Still Muad'Dib manages to fight against their unfair tactics against all odds.
He defeats the evil duke and his son, against the wishes of the evil witch queen.
"The Great Houses refuse to accept your ascension."
It plays into the narrative, that's for sure.
Aren't they appointing a receiver (former judge, IIRC) for the Trump Organization anyway? Why doesn't the receiver already have a fiduciary duty to manage the asset?
James could turn Trump Tower over to the city to house illegals. Wouldn't that be something to see?
Re: Jupiter:
Letting stupid black women into law school was a great idea.
The barrier to entering law school isn't especially high and is mostly economic (in terms of tuition and opportunity cost from three extra years of study). Not every law school is Harvard or Yale. The QA doesn't come from law schools (unless you're in Wisconsin, I suppose) -- it comes from the bar exam. And as far as I know, every one of those women passed the bar exam, just like anyone else. Their race had nothing to do with it.
Game of Thrones meets Monopoly.
I know that there are residents at the tower but don't know how much commercial occupancy.
If there are a lot of businesses there, I would tear it down and build a residential tower, assuming people still want to live in Manhattan.
The location is really good...
tim in vermont said..."This is funny too: A senior executive at NBC Universal just tweeted and then deleted that Barron Trump had turned 18 today, and so was now fair game."
I love how Newsweek followed up on that story with a headline that makes it sound like Barron Trump did something to "enrage" Republicans: Barron Trump 'Fair Game' Comment Enrages Republicans
PS. I read the Newsweek article on a computer that didn't have an ad-blocker installed. What an awful mess!
Who will be responsible for the property taxes if NY steals the building? Now I might consider buying it from NY for 20 large if they first evict all the tenant and then forgive all taxes for the next two years. That should give me plenty of time to gut and salvage the building. Just the copper alone would yield a tidy profit.
So, if all the alleged Dem goals for this lawfare are reached that hamstring his election campaign, and he wins overwhelmingly anyway - and carries large majorities into the House and Senate with him - What bad things will they accuse him of then?
If the state takes the asset, do they also take the liabilities? Also, don’t they only get to take Trump’s share of the asset? What about the other investors? It seems to me the value of their investment would fall significantly as a result and therefore open the state up to civil damages. Not a lawyer, but this will get real messy, quick.
The problem with seizing assets while an appeal is pending is that the appeal might succeed and the judgment is reversed. The AG would then have a very big problem on her hands.
"How can she manage the place?"
What's the problem? I'm sure they'll manage it as well as they manage the city itself…
Wyatt's Torch without the flames. "I left it for you as I found it. Good luck."
Just neglect, disrepair, down-market clientele, diminishing cash flow.
Makes sense to me. Only architectural change needed would be to remove the first "T" from the big sign at the entrance.
I imagine at this point, Trump wants out of New York anyways. James seizing his properties might be the easiest way out.
Howard said: All the Trump fanbois' wearing their blue dresses in these comments answers your question, Althouse.
I suspect you are really Keith Olberman's buttboy. Your puerile fascination with fellatio suggests some deep seated neuroses that really sound like Crazy Keith.
Of course, for the Trump haters, there is nothing crazy, unconstitutional or below the belt.
So, let her seize it. She can then sell it for next to nothing to Elon Musk or someone, who can later sell it back to Trump for what he paid for it. Or does she seize it on paper and enter into a management agreement with whatever Trump entity runs it now to continue until after the election, at which point she won't care anymore.
But what if she does seize it? And what if it all gets reverse by some higher court?
Does her seizing it settle that it is worth a half billion dollars? And if Trump later wins on appeal, does that mean NYC (or whatever sovereign) now has to cough up a half billion dollars back to Trump? Either in full, or in Building plus devaluation from neglect in their Stewardship?
I have to believe that there are lawyers for Trump playing the proverbial 3d chess on all this, knowing it is all very unlikely stand appeal.
TikToker popular among illegals says that under US law, it is legal to take any home they find empty, and that his friends have already seized 7 homes.
https://twitter.com/libsoftiktok/status/1770495590075650279
Wouldn't Trump put up the Tower as a property bond? Essentially a deed to the state conditional upon the outcome of the appeal.
BTW, what evidence was relied upon by the judge in his determination that Trump overvalued his property? Were appraisers called as witnesses? Who can tell me the process followed during the first stage of the trial? This old dirt lawyer would like to know.
My bride has a studio apartment on the Upper East Side that has been listed for sale since last October. None of the news out of New York gives me any optimism about selling it.
I like the “let the deadline pass” alternative, but it’s not my money.
Letitia isn’t going to fold her tent and go home. She’s going to double down on stupid, whatever that is. Until she reaches peak stupidity. Some would say she’s there now, but I don’t think so. Trump could change the playing field by just doing nothing that would open up whole new avenues of stupidity for her.
More popcorn please.
NY 'buys' Trump Tower.
NY needs to sell Trump Tower.
NY rips Trumps name of Trump Tower.
NY sells .. Tower for 1/10th of it's worth.
Trump buys Trump Tower.
Trump puts Trumps name back on Trump Tower.
Trump pays less property taxes due to the lower evaluation.
If they confiscate it, and then value it at less than market value, wouldn't NYC be guilty of the same sort of "fraud" they charged Trump with?
Lost in all of this farce is that the entire fine goes to the state of New York, as no individual or corporation actually lost any money.
Sure seems like an unconstitutional taking for public use without just compensation.
Is it just NY assets, or could they go after Mar A Lago, which you know they want to do?
Rich said...
....
... to condemn his moral standing.
3/20/24, 11:30 AM
Were you actually born yesterday? The complete and utter lack of awareness when you face hits the keyboard is on another level, here.
I'm betting James will seize Mar-A-Lago first.
She want's it to hurt.
-----
The has been my assumption. The problem is that will almost certainly backfire and make Trump more sympathetic.
Trump isn't playing for money any more. Been there, done that, won big, lived large.
I think he wants vengeance now, and doesn't care if it costs him nine-tenths of his fortune. What will be left over is still a king's ransom. He surely has tens of millions in cash and property safely out of reach of Democrat politicians and Soros prosecutors, enough to last him and his family for life, although the private 757 is probably on its way out.
Let's hope he wins, and visits apocalyptic devastation on the enemy leftist lice. I want to see Democrat bigfoots hit ten times as hard as they ever hit Trump. Take the heap of shit Biden off the inauguration platform in shackles and chains.
There are a lot of ill informed people commenting on blogs--both ardent Trump supporters and equally ardent Trump bashers. I won't feed the trolls or the ill informed. But some observations.
1. People can and do flunk the bar exam. Hillary Clinton took the DC Bar exam--and flunked it; she did manage to pass the Arkansas Bar exam. Kamala Harris flunked the California Bar exam on her first try. Some part of those first try "flunks" on the Bar exam is due to stupidity. When I took my California Bar exam more than 50 years ago, I sat next to a fellow who was making his 14th effort to pass the exam. He'd flunked 13 times---maybe made it on the 14th try. I don't know. But another part of it is hubris and failure to study and prepare. I had a couple of classmates who were on the law review at a top 10 law school--and they failed on their first try. They hadn't prepared.
2. If the New York AG seizes Trump Towers I've got an idea for a campaign advertisement. "Oppose Democrat politicians at your own risk. If they get made at you they will take your house." The campaign will go over boffo in certain parts of the country.
"Dave Begley said...
Who is the buyer and what price?
The thing many people don't get is that the value of real estate (especially high end commercial real estate) is very subjective and fact dependent.
If the Appellate Division doesn't stop this, big mistake.
This case is reversed and dismissed. And the appellate court knows that."
How does this move the appeal forward? Once she seizes this property ( assuming it is worth 450 million ) does he then get to appeal?
Curious about the process here. Or by NOT raising the money for an appeal is he refusing to appeal?
I think Trump might see such an action as a handy way to free himself of the building, while also riling up his faithful to ever higher heights of frenzy...assuming this would absolve him from paying the bond or any other debts associated with the building.
What about the tenants?
I wonder how they vote.
"PS. I read the Newsweek article on a computer that didn't have an ad-blocker installed. What an awful mess!"
Yeah, I'm setting up a new computer and went online for the first time yesterday w/o an adblocker. Holy cow! How can anybody stand that hot mess?
Play poker with a guy who owns casinos...smart...
So reading this, and some other things, why can't Trump get an underwriter for his bod to appeal? Because of this. Think about it for a minute. Trump would be pledging his property as collateral for the loan. And if the insurance companies value the properties at anything other then the judge's absurdly low valuation- each and every person involved in the approval process is risking their freedom, even if Trump is successful in his appeal.
Anyone using any estimate for real estate, or any other property based on "expert opinion" risks being second guessed by a judge with no financial expertise.
"tim in vermont said...
This is not going to scare off any of the players in NYC, the point is that "this is just for Trump, and BTW, any other credible opponents to our absolute rule," but it will play well for Trump with not only his supporters, but fair-minded (read swing) voters everywhere in the country."
It has already scared off some investors. They won't be the last.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/prominent-investor-grant-cardone-cancels-new-york-plans-40-years-in-the-making-after-trump-ruling/ar-BB1iJbAR
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/business/2866674/investors-pull-business-new-york-following-trump-verdict/
"I read the Newsweek article on a computer that didn't have an ad-blocker installed. What an awful mess!"
Oh my Lord, yes. I use Brave, which has ad blocking built in, but every once in awhile I wind up looking at a commercial website using non-adblocked Chrome. Good Heavens! What a disaster area. How do people deal with it? Particularly on a small screen.
Hello? Selling it cheap is part of the plan. Who do you think is going to buy it "cheap"?
One of the billionaire leftists who are DNC donors. And contribute to the AG's campaign. She'd LOVE to have one of her financial friends pick up Trump tower for pennies on the dollar.
This whole thing is sham. No one was harmed by Trump supposedly "overvaluing" his real estate. This is crime without a victim. A DNC ploy to destroy Trump and pick his pocket. If there's any justice this will be overturned on appeal or will go to the Federal courts and the judgement reduced to a sensible amount.
But it seems that no amount of Judicial Tryanny or onesided Justice can get the GOP establishment upset. In fact, they LOVE that the Democrats are destroying Trump and MAGA through lawfare. Senator Coryn was laughing at Texas AG Paxson for being investigated by Democrats and taunting him about "Going to Jail". That's GOPe.
Hello? Selling it cheap is part of the plan. Who do you think is going to buy it "cheap"?
One of the billionaire leftists who are DNC donors. And contribute to the AG's campaign. She'd LOVE to have one of her financial friends pick up Trump tower for pennies on the dollar.
This whole thing is sham. No one was harmed by Trump supposedly "overvaluing" his real estate. This is crime without a victim. A DNC ploy to destroy Trump and pick his pocket. If there's any justice this will be overturned on appeal or will go to the Federal courts and the judgement reduced to a sensible amount.
But it seems that no amount of Judicial Tryanny or onesided Justice can get the GOP establishment upset. In fact, they LOVE that the Democrats are destroying Trump and MAGA through lawfare. Senator Coryn was laughing at Texas AG Paxson for being investigated by Democrats and taunting him about "Going to Jail". That's GOPe.
Dan Hossley brings up a point that others have missed.
Trump does not solely own Trump Tower. He has investors, as do all prudent real estate developers and investors.
I remember Trump speaking about selling the residential units in Trump Tower. That suggests to me that they are condominiums not rental apartments. If accurate, NYS might take the physical structure of the building but could not interfere with the property rights of the individual residential owners. What is the shell of a building worth?
Am I wrong?
"And as far as I know, every one of those women passed the bar exam, just like anyone else."
So did Kamala Harris. It's a really, really, really tough exam.
Here is an article from the AP! explaining the completely unprecendedted application of the law in the Trump case.
There are others like this from reliably liberal and anti-Trump sources.
I think they know that an appeal will succeed.
Jupiter said...
"How, exactly, are you imagining that Trump might prevent March 25th from arriving?”
Easy. We’ve got to kill Tom Cruise: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edge_of_Tomorrow
After they take it, they will charge him with a crime for not reporting the seizure of his property as a campaign expense.
Re: WisRich:
A lot of comments regarding Trumps NYC building(s) being sized by James. I'm betting James will seize Mar-A-Lago first.
She can try, and I'm sure she'd love to because that's her character, but it's outside her jurisdiction, so she'd have to go through the procedure to domesticate the judgment in Florida. I'm not sure she can do that if there's an appeal.
No matter how much Letitia wins, she will never have Ivanka's hair. That's the true source of her rage.
I assume NY has a statute authorizing receivership. If that is the case, she can hire a professional receiver to manage the property on behalf of the creditors. It can often happen without significant disruption to operations, but usually receiver are brought in for distressed properties. It would be unusual but not automatically chaotic.
I don’t understand. Trump only recently described his credit status as:
"It's phenomenal, absolutely tremendous. We're talking about numbers so high, many people are saying they've never seen anything like it. The best financial institutions, they all want to work with me because they know, they've seen my record, it's unbeatable. Really, it's the highest, most respected rating out there. And let me tell you, it's not easy to achieve what I've achieved. It takes smart deals, incredible success, and frankly, the kind of financial genius that very few possess. So when we talk about credit, mine is top-notch, the best in the business. Believe me."
It could be a parody, or it could be genuine. Either is totally believable.
What about this : “ Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed”.
There were no victims of this crime. How can half a billion dollars not be grossly excessive?
If this fine stands the constitution is dead.
Trump can sue James and New York State for conspiracy to suppress the civil rights of himself and his supporters. The Civil Rights Acts made such conspiracies both a crime and a tort.
The reason for making it a tort that the authors of the civil rights acts knew that they were facing recalcitrant state governments and even possibly a recalcitrant federal government, meaning they could not count on the criminal law against conspiracy to suppress civil rights being enforced.
That is exactly the situation that Trump is facing: a state government that is happy to attack the civil rights of half the voters in the country, and a federal government that is eager to see this unconstitutional and anti-democratic behavior succeed. So sue the bastards!
Trump's 'crime' is a fictional creation. I do hope he wins the Presidency and his DOJ personally indict James and Engoron on equally creative interpretation of civil rights violations, with of course, exorbitant penalties. There could very well be a legitimate case even without any pretense.
We've been in a cold or soft civil war and the left has chosen the weapons.
There'll be no chance (if any) of ending this lawfare unless there's pain and recognition by corrupt officials that they're just as vulnerable to their own methods.
Is it better for Trump if he allows her to take Trump tower and then wins it back on appeal? The issue is that he can’t appeal without the bond or surrendering the awarded amount. Or, does he go to federal court for relief from the absurd requirement? Somehow he has to let NY live with the consequences of their own actions in the most painful way possible.
Trump's 'crime' is a fictional creation. I do hope he wins the Presidency and his DOJ personally indict James and Engoron on equally creative interpretations of civil rights violations with exorbitant penalties. Frankly, there may very we be a legitimate case without a pretense.
We've been in a cold or soft civil war and the left has chosen the war.
This lawfare will not(if ever) end unless there is pain and recognition by leftist corrupt officials they're just as vulnerable to their own methods.
It will take a while to “seize” Trump assets. They can’t swan in on Monday and put a lock on the door of one of his office buildings. And Trump Tower is mainly condos.
Let her seize Trump Tower. How will that look?
Slap a lien on the properties, encumbering them from being sold or mortgaged. Garnish the rents paid depriving the Trump Organization of any income.
That's how it is done.
Collection of judgments is not something unusual or in need of reinventing the wheel.
attempts to humiliate Trump haven't been working out as planned
Are you kidding? This nobody Letitia James has made Trump look impotent. Because he is. Impotent - powerless to stop her (or many others). And this is the guy who thinks he's going to be powerful if elected? Trump is being made a bitch now. As in his first term, plenty of people will impose their will on him, not the other way around.
As the Lincoln Project ad, featuring an AI video of Fred Trump Sr. goes:
"Donnie, I always knew you would blow it. You are a fool, low rent."
"I may have lost my mind but I never lost my business."
Fred Trump died in 1999 at age 93 from Alzheimer's disease but Trump never mentions that his father did indeed lose his mind, which begets the question:
Is Alzheimer's genetic? Alzheimer's Association says "yes."
Family history is not necessary for an individual to develop Alzheimer's. However, research shows that those who have a parent or sibling with Alzheimer's are more likely to develop the disease than those who do not have a first-degree relative with Alzheimer's.
Genetic tests are now available for genes that directly cause Alzheimer's. Perhaps Trump do us all a favor and get the tests run instead of boasting in public about “acing” the Montreal Cognitive Assessment, a basic Q & A test that flags signs of early dementia.
Why not allow Trump to put up his NY properties as collateral?
You mean put the properties up with the court as collateral? That's effectively giving the court/state a security interest in the properties, which is effectively a lien. You are proposing that Trump voluntarily give the court/James a lien on the properties instead of her slapping a lien on the properties herself?
What's the dif?
Maybe Foxconn wants to buy it? 🤣😂🤣
"Play poker with a guy who owns casinos...smart..."
Casinos he ran into bankruptcy...not smart....
I predict the corrupt left will tear it down and then offer DNC tickets to come and piss on it - for a nice donation to the democrat party coffers.
I'd figure there is a shitload of empty office space since the bullshit pandemic in NYC, Chicago, LA, SF....etc.
Maybe Trump tower is overvalued (if it's empty). Seems the value of a lot of high rises would be based on the ability to sell, lease, and rent space inside for whatever reason.
Letita may just push the first domino.
Deadbeat scumbag continues lifelong pattern of not paying the debts he's incurred.
Who wasn't paid in this case? Be specific.
"Slap a lien on the properties, encumbering them from being sold or mortgaged. Garnish the rents paid depriving the Trump Organization of any income."
You fascists will love the payback...
DD Driver - your leftist authoritarian ways are hilarious.
Jupiter said...
"And as far as I know, every one of those women passed the bar exam, just like anyone else."
So did Kamala Harris. It's a really, really, really tough exam.
-----
Actually, it is a really tough exam. In my state the test is 20 hours long and goes on for two and one-half days.
You go, tweedle dee-dee !
Let her seize Trump Tower
Dog catches car...
Aren't property taxes based on value? If the state says the property is worth less are they going to give a refund on the taxes????? LOL
To Gadfly and Mark that think Letitia James isn't trying to seize Trump's properties:
New York AG says she’ll seize Donald Trump’s property if he can’t pay $454 million civil fraud debt
"New York Attorney General Letitia James told ABC News on Tuesday that she will seek to seize some of the former president’s assets if he’s unable to cover the bill from Judge Arthur Engoron’s Feb. 16 ruling."
Your argument is with the AG of NY. Quit calling other people liars for pointing out her claims.
Let her seize Trump Tower, he will win it back eventually through SCOTUS.
He should build a new and better Trump Tower in Florida, heck build 2 of them diagonal to each other. Big square 110 story twin Trump Towers and just below the name a big "FU-NY"
PB said...
"On seizing it, can she just turn around and sell it? For pennies on the dollar? I think that's the plan for Mar a Lago."
And then Trump buys it back for less than what he paid for it. Meanwhile the city is paying the taxes and maintaining the building.
"Anyone using any estimate for real estate, or any other property based on "expert opinion" risks being second guessed by a judge with no financial expertise."
If the state siezes it they'll need to get their own appraisal.
This was a stupid thing for the state to do. None of the consequences roll out in the states favor.
Interested Bystander said...
"... Letting stupid black women into law school was a great idea."
Enough with the stupid racism. It's not that they are stupid (they passed the Bar exam!), not that they're black (Google "Thomas Sowell"), nor that they're women (Google "Rikki Schlott").
It's that they hold, and act on, evil beliefs.
PB said...
"On seizing it, can she just turn around and sell it? For pennies on the dollar? I think that's the plan for Mar a Lago."
And then Trump buys it back for less than what he paid for it. Meanwhile the city is paying the taxes and maintaining the building.
"Anyone using any estimate for real estate, or any other property based on "expert opinion" risks being second guessed by a judge with no financial expertise."
If the state siezes it they'll need to get their own appraisal.
This was a stupid thing for the state to do. None of the consequences roll out in the states favor.
Rich said...
What is lost in the discussion is that no major U.S. bank would/will lend to Trump. This has been a reality for years,...
******************
Rich, you are soooo full of shit.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/zacheverson/2022/03/09/trump-refinances-100-million-mortgage-on-trump-tower-with-a-bank-headed-by-a-political-supporter/?sh=6427a1475500
I'm sure you'll harrumph about the bank not being "major", but $100 million isn't chump change.
As for its head being a Trump supporter, try distinguishing him from, say, big Dem donors like Jamie Dimon.
He (north of the 101) is right, the attempts to humiliate Trump aren't working. Mark is also correct that Trump is an impotent powerless bitch. His supporters like Donald's fall into the gutter because it makes Trump just like them: The poor oppressed helpless victims of strong evil Democrats who so dominate their delicate psyche's.
Confidence man 101, both the huckster and all of his marks must feel victimized by the common enemy. Mission accomplished. Props to Donald, he's attempting to shoot the moon.
Blogger Mark said...
attempts to humiliate Trump haven't been working out as planned
Are you kidding? This nobody Letitia James has made Trump look impotent. Because he is. Impotent - powerless to stop her (or many others). And this is the guy who thinks he's going to be powerful if elected? Trump is being made a bitch now. As in his first term, plenty of people will impose their will on him, not the other way around.
Reminds me of Atlas Shrugged when the men of ability retreat to Galt's gulch and let the incompetents run the world. See how they are going to do it. Hah! Art imitating life.
Here is how the scam worked.
Let’s take a typical real estate lending transaction. Trump wants to borrow money against a piece of property. He files a loan application, valuing it at $100 million. The bank does their own Due Diligence, doing a formal appraisal, and values it at, say, $80 million. Then they loan him $70 million. Never more than their appraised value for the property. Trump makes timely payments through time, and eventually pays the loan off. Everyone wins. But then the Manhattan DA decides to get Trump. She discovers that Trump valued the property for the lender at $100 million. Was it worth that much, at that time? Maybe, but a trial should determine that, with everyone putting their experts on the stand to testify. But the judge has a better idea. The various counties appraise the properties for the assessment of property taxes. So, he accepts those appraised values through judicial notice. After all, they are official government records. With judicial notice, there is no reason to have a long trial as to the value of the properties. So, there wasn’t one. What could be the problem with that? The answer is that county property appraisals are notoriously inaccurate, almost always on the low side. So, the judge uses, say, a $20 million county appraised value, resulting in an $80 million dollar fraud on someone. That’s presumably the amount that needs, apparently, to be disgorged. $80 million in paper prophets from a nonexistent transaction, fabricated out of thin air. No one lost a penny on the deal.
The whole judgment is on extremely shaky ground. It very likely violates the 8th Amdt provision against Excess Fines, and 14th Amdt requiring Due Process (remember the trial on valuation that wasn’t). That too isn’t a problem, because NY requires a bond covering the fine (built out of thin air) as well as interest and costs, to appeal. And, it turns out, no one will issue a bond that size, absent probably at least twice that in liquid assets that can be pledged. And, Trump can’t borrow against the properties in order generate the cash needed, because the judge also froze his ability to do business in NY, which means that until that is overcome, he can’t sell or borrow against the properties. And he needs to appeal to get around that hurdle too - which also requires that excessive bond.
The absurdity is that this happens many times, every workday in NYC. One party wants to borrow money. One to loan it. They come to an agreement, and the money is lent, secured by the real property. Ultimately, the lender’s appraisal rules. And those appraised values are inevitably significantly above the county’s appraised values.
How would this tactic play out? Is it a trick?
=================
aren't all tactics trick?
Mark seems to love him some Banana Republic action.
Mark doesnt think things through. Mark has a mental disorder.
It would be the most expensive public housing ever.
If I were her, I would not be taunting Darwin by dissing someone highly likely to win his third term as the president of the United States.
David135: "Trump's 'crime' is a fictional creation."
Yes, it is.
But if one is a butthurt and bitter DeSantis supporter, like VA Lawyer Mark, that cant get past DeSantis' $200 Million failure to deliver even a single Iowa County in a caucus after essentially living there for months, then this "fictional creation" lawfare "crime" by marxist NY dems is a dream come true.
It really does play much better for him as a victim I suppose.
=================
will Trump be allowed to panhandle on Fifth Avenue? [Trading Places]
Because he is. Impotent - powerless to stop her (or many others).
We are all powerless against the state if it really wants to get us. That seems a very stupid thing to be gloating about. Stupid and short-sighted.
Assuming James takes control of the Trump Tower n she has a fiduciary duty to the citizens of New York to operate it in the interests of the State, which would mean in almost every instance to maximize its value. She would not be able to sell it "cheap."
I would find it hilarious if she ends up selling it for well above what she claims is value is.
Turn Trump Tower over to the state. The name “Trump” will be removed, leaving a shadow that will destroy the left and their lawfare. It is worth the price.
According to Justice Ginsberg: “[T]he protection against excessive fines has been a constant shield throughout Anglo-American history: Exorbitant tolls undermine other constitutional liberties. Excessive fines can be used, for example, to retaliate against or chill the speech of political enemies.... Even absent a political motive, fines may be employed in a measure out of accord with the penal goals of retribution and deterrence.” Timbs v. Indiana. So pretty obviously on point.
And earlier in United States v. Bajakajian, the Supreme Court considered whether or not a forfeiture “is grossly disproportional to the gravity of a defendant’s offense.” A half a billion dollar for a nothing offense is shocking.
Jupiter said...
"Trump could let the March 25th deadline arrive and force James to act."
Oh, yeah. Or, he could sprout wings and fly to the Moon. How, exactly, are you imagining that Trump might prevent March 25th from arriving? Or stop that "strong Black woman" with a sketchy AA legal education from grossly abusing her authority? Take a look around. Letitia James. Fani Willis. Kim Foxx. Ketanji Brown Jackson. Marilyn Mosby. Kimberly Gardner. Letting stupid black women into law school was a great idea. The function of the law is to protect the right to loot. Diversity is our strength! We can always build more cities.
Regular reminder that these are the moderated comments on the Althouse blog.
"His popularity could skyrocket if James confiscates his tower. The political value might exceed the half a billion dollars in wealth it will cost."
Neither Biden's popularity nor Trump's popularity is going to skyrocket. Neither of these guys is going to be riding a rocket to popularity. From which voters is this new popularity going to come from? Democrats? Maybe the tiny number of independents could be swayed to support Trump over this. But just as likely they could be swayed to oppose Trump over this. The more likely outcome is they don't even pay attention to it because who cares? This is all background noise to them.
I don't think she'll seize the property. Doing so will expose the city to expensive litigation to determine what can be seized, years of court costs, an unwillingness of investors (with influence) to show their part in Trump investments, and an immediate outcry for removing her from office. It will be theater at its best, but in the end, the ridiculous way the law was abused won't hold up in appeal.
Gadfly 2:22.
What a despicable human being you are. Take a good hard look at what your obsession has done to you.
I still say whomever wins the current Megamillions should just give the ticket to Trump.
Re: Patrick:
Assuming James takes control of the Trump Tower n she has a fiduciary duty to the citizens of New York to operate it in the interests of the State, which would mean in almost every instance to maximize its value.
Even without checking, I feel pretty confident in saying that government bureaucrats and elected officials do not, in fact, have a fiduciary duty to the citizenry to operate government assets in the best interests of the public, financial or otherwise. Among other things, I feel fairly certain it would have been huge news if a citizen or taxpayer successfully sued a public official for letting public assets go to waste. And would have prompted a flood of lawsuits around the country.
Regular reminder that these are the moderated comments on the Althouse blog.
Regular reminder that you've been told to take your bullshit somewhere else numerous times.
LLR-democratical and Violent Homosexual Rage Rape Poster Chuck: "Regular reminder that these are the moderated comments on the Althouse blog."
Regular reminder that Creepy Chuck was banned from Althouse blog and now has thoughts re: Althouse blog moderation.
Discuss.
Butkus51: "Mark seems to love him some Banana Republic action.
Mark doesnt think things through. Mark has a mental disorder."
VA Lawyer Mark only strongly approves of Bills of Attainder and banana republic lawfare abusive actions if they are applied to Trump.
He's very "principled" in that way.
Trump Tower includes a condominium with 231 units - 230 of those belong to people other than Trump. There's about 130,000 feet of office space. The largest office tenant is The Trump Organization which leases two floors with no doubt extensive leasehold rights. There are numerous tenants with some spaces as small as 2,000 sq ft. There is about the same amount of retail space - mostly small high end stores including Tiffany's and Gucci and 4 touristy restaurants owned by The Trump Organization. It's probably a cash cow for the Trump Organization which manages the condominium and the commercial space and takes a cut of the retail and restaurants, but it might not be for a new owner without the management.
Shipwreckedcrew sums up the Lawfare crew and their supporter minions well:
"You support bankrupting someone before an 8th Amendment challenge can be resolved? All based on the opinion of a single partisan judge when there is no evidence of actual loss?
On a case brought under a “consumer protection” statute when there are no consumers?
Muh Trump."
Drago should work for Trump's insult team. Call it the "DeSantis supporters are scum and should not vote for Trump" campaign. You go grrrl.
His popularity could skyrocket if James confiscates his tower.
LJ may TRY to confiscate his tower. Then he takes the whole thing to Federal Court, for the obvious violations of his rights, and LJ loses in SCOTUS
Public employees* have the ace card = immunity.
"Thanks, suckas"
*Properly stated it's those individuals on a public payroll who cash checks. If only they worked like employees.
To those that think the property will be sold for pennies on the dollar to some connected DNC donor… it seems like at the very least the state would be required to accept bids for the property. And if some other party was willing to pay a valuation on par with how Trump and his banks valued the property, it seems like the state would be obliged to accept it… and that would definitively undermine the basis for seizing it in the first place.
tom @ 6:33 PM said: "Neither Biden's popularity nor Trump's popularity is going to skyrocket. Neither of these guys is going to be riding a rocket to popularity. From which voters is this new popularity going to come from?"
Well, all it would have required in 2020 was 30,000 independents in 3 swing states and Trump would have been re-elected. That ain't many votes out of several million. Maybe there's about 30K to 500K there who realize Biden has been a divisive and incompetent leader? We'll see; that's why they have elections...
What I find more interesting today is that Trump could net a $3.5 Billion windfall from taking Truth Social public. The vote goes down this Friday. With $3.5B, even Letitia James can't hamstring Trump.
Here's the link to the WSJ: https://www.wsj.com/finance/stocks/trump-is-in-line-for-a-3-5-billion-windfall-from-his-stake-in-truth-social-eae58c9d?mod=hp_lead_pos5
Start popping the corn, folks!
Balfegor while you are on point, don't put past Trump if elected to put Congress on the hook to require that government and government bureaucrats be held liable for spoiling or otherwise dissipate government assets.
All the usual lefties here made their usual inane comments, all vitriol and no substance. The damage that James and Engeron have done and are continuing to do is really beyond the scope of most people's imagination. The purpose of a bond for appellate purposes is to stay the execution of the judgment. If indeed the statute the State and court are traveling on requires a bond in order to appeal, I can't imagine that a federal court would not invalidate that provision as it denies the right to appeal. Then there are the excessive fines issues. Perhaps non-TDS lawyers here can explain to the willfully obtuse on how on so may grounds this case can not succeed ultimately. Trump personally doesn't own Trump tower all by himself, so what can they grab except whatever small portion that he owns. What does that get the State? Nothing except litigation by the other owners for spoilage of their properties without just compensation.Of course while that is going on, the other owners will sue to have their property taxes reduced to as close to zero as possible. Those owners won't be able to sell since the State just destroyed their property value. No investor or group of investors in their right mind will take the carved out portion for even one dollar. If James prevails, however unlikely that is, she will be under enormous pressure to do the same to all of the other big NY developers just to avoid selective prosecution issues and then to explain to her constituents this law only applies to Trump and that is why she is leaving all the money she can get from the other developers on the table. If ever Congress will ever be cowed into curbing prosecutorial immunity along with elected officials and bureaucratic immunity an elected Trump is just the man to force Congress to do. That will go a long way towards draining the swamp. Florida and Texas real estate is going to go to the moon if this keeps up. As a Floridian, it would not surprise me at all if the Florida Legislature were to legislate a very narrow statute tailored made to disable NY State from domesticating the Trump specific judgment. Thinking about what a disaster for New York State and City this is, is like peeling an onion. layers and layers of economic disasters. Imagine the arguments made that no property in New York State is worth what it is appraised for when the mortgage or interim financing was funded. Ever borrower and every lender is in principle on the hook like Trump. Can't argue prosecutorial discretion when only one individual is prosecuted when there are tens of thousands if not more who have done essentially the same. Can't tax at the state level inheritance tax based on property values. Can't use appraisal values on appraisals for the IRS since valuation principle for New York State inheritance values are different from the IRS's values. There so many more layers in this insanity than I can list at this time.
boatbuilder said...
" Gadfly 2:22.
What a despicable human being you are. Take a good hard look at what your obsession has done to you. "
This is nonsense. Knock it off.
Althouse:
"His popularity could skyrocket if James confiscates his tower. The political value might exceed the half a billion dollars in wealth it will cost."
There's no basis for this speculation. Trump's indictments may have helped his popularity among the Know Nothings during the Republican primary, but most experts have pointed out that this will not translate to the general election and the polls indicate that just the opposite is true.
Blogger Jupiter said...
"Trump could let the March 25th deadline arrive and force James to act."
" Oh, yeah. Or, he could sprout wings and fly to the Moon. How, exactly, are you imagining that Trump might prevent March 25th from arriving? Or stop that "strong Black woman" with a sketchy AA legal education from grossly abusing her authority? Take a look around. Letitia James. Fani Willis. Kim Foxx. Ketanji Brown Jackson. Marilyn Mosby. Kimberly Gardner. Letting stupid black women into law school was a great idea. The function of the law is to protect the right to loot. Diversity is our strength! We can always build more cities."
Polly want a cracker.
Some questions and comments.
1) How much of Trump Tower does Trump own? Just his personal condos? The commercial space? Anything else?
2) Executing on a judgment against real estate in New York doesn't happen all that quickly. It would normally take several months. The real estate interest being sold has to be advertised four separate times. Possibly Trump could drag out the process long enough to allow the Appellate Division to hear the appeal.
3) It's not possible for the judgment creditor to seize and just keep the real estate -- it has to be sold at auction. I don't know if the executing creditor has any kind of duty to try to get the best price at the auction. I would guess not so long as they comply with the rules on advertising, etc. Secret deals with favored buyers would of course be illegal. There's nothing stopping the debtor from trying to get the price up by providing private information about the property to bidders, etc.
4) Rather than execute and sell the property, the judgment creditor could just get a judgment lien on the property, which would last forever and give the judgment creditor first dibs (after any pre-existing mortgage debt) on any future sale proceeds.
@Tom 1:59: Trump can appeal but he can't get a stay of execution of the judgment unless he posts a bond. But with or without a bond, he has the absolute right to appeal.
Trump only owns certain condo units and perhaps some commercial areas on the ground floor. The condo association is not Trump’s property either. The fi fa could only levy upon the small parts Trump owns.
Oh but the cluster fuck of chaos the many innocents will suffer as their Trump Tower units become un-sellable as the State of New York screws its operations up beyond all recognition.
This will become the final terrorist attack on NYC that crashes its real estate in a bloodbath of lost values.
Gabriel is blowing his horn and the walls will come tumbling down...
Let her seize Trump Tower. How can she manage the place?
Governments seize assets all the time and sell them for pennies on the dollar. Management has nothing to do with it.
Minority communities who are being displaced in favor of illegal immigrants may find an affinity with Trump’s predicament. They’re all being abused by their local governments.
I can't see the AG reaching out to the Florida property. They would have to domesticate the NY judgment in Florida. A Florida judge would have to grant the petition. Collection would, most likely, be governed by Florida law.
Boulder Idiot: "Drago should work for Trump's insult team. Call it the "DeSantis supporters are scum and should not vote for Trump" campaign. You go grrrl."
The Trump campaign clearly did not require any additional help as they clinched the nomination in record time with record vote totals at very little cost and delivered significantly increased support for their candidate amongst all races in the middle class, working class, working poor and low propensity voters.
You know, the types of people Boulder Idiot despises and does not want in the republican party.
It appears the DeSantis Online Influencer Campaign best represented at Althouse blog by AMDG, which Boulder Idiot loved loved LOVED, and was also funded at eye popping levels, was demonstrably one of the biggest campaign mistakes made in this cycle and helped to drive DeSantis' support into a ditch resulting in an immediate exit.
Boulder Idiot is having a difficult time internalizing this reality and whines accordingly...which is strange since it appears to me her GOPe/dem alliance to knock Trump out of the race will be successful and then she can have one of her GOPe approved dream candidates step in.
So why isnt she celebrating?
Moondawggie answered this question, when he said...
From which voters is this new popularity going to come from?"
Well, all it would have required in 2020 was 30,000 independents in 3 swing states and Trump would have been re-elected
to be Absolutely Fair.. 30,000 independents in 3 swing states would have just meant that the dems would have had to rescan Another 30,000 votes.. THIS is where the 'new popularity' comes from.
WHY does they ALWAYS count democrats votes Last? Because they HAVE TO know how many to rescan
We live in a fascist dictatorship... get Used to it
Breezy: "Minority communities who are being displaced in favor of illegal immigrants may find an affinity with Trump’s predicament. They’re all being abused by their local governments."
Quite true.
The primary vote analysis thus far for states already completed shows clearly that in urban areas where minority voters predominate Trump had significant and important gains while, ironically, Trump continued to hold his vote totals in the suburbs and exurbs.
This is why Biden ran off to have fried chicken with a black family (not a joke), made a quick run to Nevada (only 25 people showed up!) and is now adding more aggressive "Trump is racist against Latino's" rhetoric in his incoherent "speeches".
This simply means Boulder Idiot's beloved GOPe-ers will have to increase their joint efforts with their democratical allies to knock Trump out of the race...and as I've said, I think they will be successful after which McConnell and Romney and Murkowski et al will be able to breath a sigh of relief.
@tradiitionguy: I’m not an expert on the law of collections, but my understanding is that the judgment creditor can’t seize and hold the property. What execution on real estate means is that the sheriff of the county sells the property at a public auction and the judgment creditor gets the net proceeds after the sheriff’s 5% and other expenses. Who is responsible for management during the period of advertising and sale? I don’t know. Condo owners would probably find their units difficult to sell during that period.
Trump "saved" Manhattan when he invested downtown when few others would. It is only a great ending that the town should turn on the savior in the trope of 'High Noon', etc.
And when NYC is begging for a 1970s style bailout again, everyone in all the country should ensure that their congress reps know that if they vote to bail out NYC, their career is over and that will also apply to any of their offspring who enter politics. Carry a grudge against New York City until at least 2125.
gadfly said...
Donald Trump has been found to have obtained ill-gotten gains from banks and insurers through illegal or unethical business transactions as a result of a civil lawsuit in Manhattan's Supreme Court, which must be refunded (disgorged) with appropriate interest to the people.
That's not true at all. There were no ill-gotten gains, no damages. The fine is punitive, not based on any losses to any party as there were none. That makes this fine subject to challenge under the 8th amendment. This is a takings by the government through corrupt judicial process.
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