Former US President Donald Trump called a New York court's decision to find him guilty in a civil lawsuit alleging fraud in the valuation of Trump Organization assets a witch hunt and election interference.
“This election interference and oppressive abuse of power by a corrupt judge and corrupt attorney general cannot be tolerated,” the politician said in a statement posted on his TRUTH Social account.
Trump claims there were “no casualties” and no one testified about fraud.
“I paid over $300 million in taxes to the city and state of New York, and they want me out. They are crazy madmen who destroy everything in their path. It all started with Biden’s attacks on his political opponent!” — the former head of the White House emphasized.
He also added that he intends to appeal the court's decision.
“We must ensure that corrupt politicians and judges can no longer abuse their powers and undermine public trust. We have already won and will continue to fight (by filing
- RT
) an appeal,” said the former head of the White House.
Earlier, a court in New York found Trump guilty of fraud, ordering him to pay about $355 million. The ex-leader of the United States will also be banned for three years from holding positions, including management positions, in “any corporation in the state of New York,” and also apply for loans from financial institutions that are registered in this state. It is worth noting that the court did not fully satisfy the prosecution’s demands: the state prosecutor’s office requested $370 million in compensation and Trump’s lifetime ban from real estate business. The prosecution filed a lawsuit against Trump and his company back in September 2022. According to New York State Attorney General Letitia James, the company provided false information about the value of assets in order to obtain more favorable conditions on loans and insurance.
As James said on February 16, Trump allegedly engaged in “widespread fraud” over many years to fraudulently inflate his net worth and “illegally enrich himself, his family and his company.”
“He may be the author of the book “The Art of the Deal,” but the trial showed that his business activity was based on the art of theft,” the prosecutor general said.
She called the court's ruling against Trump a "huge victory."
New York State Attorney General Letitia James
AP
© Bebeto Matthews
“Today justice has triumphed. This is a huge victory for our state, our country and everyone who believes that each of us should play by the same rules — even former presidents,” James said.
Political context
Let us recall that in total, Trump is charged with 91 offenses in four criminal cases, which he regards as an attempt by the current American administration to prevent him from taking part in the upcoming presidential elections. A number of articles provide for liability in the form of imprisonment for up to 20 years. However, if the court decides to determine the punishment by adding terms, Trump faces more than 700 years in prison on the totality of charges.
The former US President is confident that they are all false. According to him, the Biden administration deliberately waited until “the very height of the election campaign,” when Trump became the leader in public opinion polls. The politician also emphasized that every time he is charged, his position “only gets stronger.”
According to poll aggregator RealClearPolitics, as of February 16, 2024, 44.9% of Americans surveyed are ready to support Trump, while Biden is 43.8%.
Data from poll aggregator RealClearPolitics
© RealClearHolding, LLC
“They are breaking the judicial system”
Analysts say the Biden administration is doing everything possible to prosecute Trump on as many counts as possible, hoping to thereby lower his ratings and prevent him from running in the election. And the situation around the Trump Organization is just one component of the “accusation campaign” that is currently being waged against Trump.
“The Biden campaign and his team as a whole are well aware that Trump has a much better chance of winning the upcoming election, given the very specific state of health of the current president. The best option for Democrats is a situation in which Trump simply cannot participate in the election. And just for this, the flywheel with various prosecutions will spin up to show that Trump is allegedly not a worthy candidate,” said Evgeniy Semibratov, deputy director of the Institute for Strategic Studies and Forecasts of the RUDN University, lecturer at the Knowledge Society, in a conversation with RT.
As the expert explained, such accusations have ruined the careers of more than one politician in American history.
“And now they are trying to play this card with Trump, accusing him of a whole galaxy of charges, including tax evasion and interaction with one of the porn actresses, who allegedly had some kind of relationship with Trump. They hit, as they say, with all guns. And this campaign around the Trump Organization is just one of the tools to prevent Trump from reaching the elections,” Semibratov said.
At the same time, he said, one must pay tribute to Trump himself and his campaign headquarters, who quite skillfully explain to voters that he is, in fact, a “victim of the regime.”
“As for the nuclear electorate, it really works. The “ours are being beaten” switch is activated, and thus Trump supporters are mobilized,” explained Semibratov.
Pavel Feldman, associate professor at the Academy of Labor and Social Relations, shares a similar opinion. From his point of view, a large fine and a number of restrictions ordered by the court give Trump grounds to call himself “a victim of the repressive and corrupt Biden system,” which puts political pressure on the judiciary.
“This will add to his popularity in the eyes of the conservative electorate. By holding Trump accountable in a civil suit, the Democrats won this private battle, but they are likely to lose the general battle for the presidency. They were never able to achieve a complete ban on the participation of their main opponent in the primaries and caucuses at the state level. Therefore, the path to Trump’s election is still open,” Feldman said in a commentary to RT.
At the same time, support for the current US president is declining, the analyst stated.
“Americans are well aware that Biden's physical fitness and mental state are incompatible with effective leadership of the country. Nevertheless, the globalist-oriented elites and representatives of the US Democratic Party controlled by them are trying by hook or by crook to put the practically incompetent Biden in the presidency for another four years. To achieve their goal, they are breaking the American judicial system at their knees,” Feldman noted.
Donald Trump supporters
Gettyimages.ru
© Win McNamee
He predicted that investigations and trials against Trump will continue at least until the election in November. However, even if the Democrats get Trump arrested, American law will allow him to run for president, Feldman explained.
“Consequently, to ensure Biden’s victory, his associates will have to resort to electoral fraud on an unprecedented scale. This, in turn, is fraught with mass protests from deceived voters—supporters of the Republican Party,” Feldman concluded.