In American politics, there are benefits to following the money. In Trump's case, money is slipping away from him in the form of fines and damages. In the past month, about 5$300 million.
These indemnities are not enough to trigger Trump's bankruptcy — his net worth is about $2.6 billion, but the indemnities will eat into his cash balance and severely limit the ability of Trump's organization to operate.
He will face a three-year ban on lending money in New York, where he first used his name to raise money.
The solution to Trump's business woes is clearly to reclaim the White House. Unlike any federal conviction Trump could suffer between now and Election Day, he clearly has no right to pardon his own barrage of civil damages. But his re-election will give him a lot of room to replenish his funding in other ways.
The world's attention is mainly focused on whether Trump will get the United States out of NATO, abandon Ukraine and start a new ** war. Trump's domestic opponents, meanwhile, are focused on the threat he will pose to the US constitutional order.
All of these ghosts are real, and most of them are highly probable. But one thing is for sure, Trump will go for the money.
Shortly before taking office in January 2017**, Trump doubled his Mar-A-Lago membership to $200,000. In his first two years in office, the Trump Hotel received about $7.8 million in business from foreign countries**, mainly Saudi Arabia, China, Qatar, Kuwait and India.
During Trump's presidency, one country quickly registered a large number of trademarks for his daughter's Ivanka's company. Shortly after leaving office, her husband, Kushner, received a $2 billion investment from Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth**.
And that's not even counting Eric and Donald Jr., Trump's two sons, who ran businesses during his tenure and obtained various licensing deals overseas.
The Trump family is not hiding this.
Theoretically, it is illegal to give gifts to the United States. However, such gratuities are difficult to prove in court if it is not a direct cash bribe. The Supreme Court rejected an application to hear Trump's conflicts of interest in 2021, saying the issues were no longer relevant because he had stepped down from office. Trump has since embezzled about $50 million in campaign donations to pay his legal bills.
If the U.S. Federal Election Commission had had gritted teeth and clearer rules, it wouldn't have allowed this misguided guidance. However, as Trump constantly reminds his supporters, the rules are for fools. The only real obstacle preventing Trump from monetizing his position is the American electorate.
Given that Trump's net worth is likely to shrink, the chances of influencing his decision-making will be very high. It is certainly no coincidence that the so-called Muslim ban he proposed at the beginning of his presidency did not include the wealthy Gulf states. In fact, Trump's ban should have been called a "ban on poor Muslim countries."
His first overseas trip was to Saudi Arabia. In his first two years in office, the Saudis were Trump's second-largest clients at New York and Washington hotels. A certain country is the first. Unless the appeal wins, Trump is now barred from borrowing from a New York chartered bank until 2027. This has significantly increased the leverage of potential lenders in the Gulf region and beyond.
Without borrowing money, the Trump organization cannot function.
Just the day after last week's New York court ruling, Trump unveiled a new line of $399 "Never Surrender Hightop" sneakers. Trump's new merchandise is gold with a big T-letter engraved on the side. Since these sneakers are limited to just 1,000 pairs, Trump apparently won't lose much by the sneaker sales, even though some buyers can sell as much as $9,000 per pair.
Trump's $99 "Victory47" perfume is also unlikely to bring in a lot of money. But it doesn't matter. Trump's campaign is inextricably linked to his merchandise business. The same goes for his ** position and his party. Last week, he proposed that his daughter-in-law, Lara Trump, be the next co-chair of the Republican National Committee.
It is often said that the biggest incentive for Trump's victory in November was not to put himself in jail. In fact, the miraculous laws of the United States allowed him to run and win in prison, and he would presumably try to free himself at that point.
What is even less well known is that re-election will boost Trump's solvency. Last week's hefty fine was based on his defrauding lenders by vastly inflating assets. For example, Trump Tower on Wall Street has 63 floors, while his managers claim 72 floors.
As a result of the failure to fulfill his due obligations, his creditors deserved to suffer losses. If American voters vote for Trump to return to power, they deserve it.