Trump Is Facing Some Serious Financial Troubles
The danger posed to Donald Trump’s finances by two recent judgments against him has been, if anything, underappreciated. The size of the awards, the structure of the former president’s business empire, and the condition of the real-estate market combine to create a truly perilous moment for the former president’s company and, by extension, for Trump’s personal finances. Trump must put up the $83.3 million awarded to the writer E. Jean Carroll for defamation by March 9. He also owes more than $450 million—the amount continues to grow because of interest—in a fraud case brought by New York Attorney General Letitia James, and must put up cash or post a bond by March 25. He has appealed both decisions. Trump doesn’t have that money on hand. In an April 2023 deposition for the fraud case, Trump said, “We have a lot of cash. I believe we have substantially in excess of $400 million in cash, which is a lot for a developer. Developers usually don’t have cash. They have assets, not cash. We have, I believe, …