Trump says he will defend himself against "corrupt and racist attorney" in NY fraud case

After being found guilty of fraud last week, a civil trial against Donald Trump and his company is set to begin today with Attorney General Letitia James's $250 million lawsuit. Unsurprisingly, Trump has plenty to say about this, and on Sunday, October 1st, the former president took to Truth Social to speak his mind.

In a post on his own social media platform, Donald Trump said, "I'm going to Court tomorrow morning to fight for my name and reputation against a corrupt and racist Attorney General, Letitia James."

Trump went on to write that James had "campaigned on 'getting Trump,' and a Trump Hating Judge who is unfair, unhinged, and vicious in his PURSUIT of me."

Trump ended his rant by saying, "He values Mar-a-Lago, in Palm Beach, Florida, at 18 Million Dollars, when it is worth 50 to 100 times that amount. His valuations are FRAUDULENT in pursuit of Election Interference, and worse. THIS WHOLE CASE IS A SHAM!!! See you in Court - Monday morning."

As reported by Forbes, on September 26, Manhattan-based Judge Arthur Engoron delivered a ruling that holds Trump, along with his adult sons and The Trump Organization,  guilty of fraud by overstating the value of their assets via false financial statements for over a decade. The civil suit being held this week will mainly decide the penalty Trump and his company will face.

Last week Trump went on another intense rant after being found guilty. As Newsweek reported in a statement on Truth Social, Trump declared that Judge Engoron was "deranged" and called the court's ruling that he committed fraud "un-American".

Trump went on to rant, "We are rapidly becoming a Communist Country, and my Civil Rights have been taken away from me." He then continued, "A Highly Politicized Democrat Judge ... simply rule[d], despite all of the evidence to the contrary, that I committed fraud, which is both ridiculous and untrue."

Judge Engoron's ruling, as reported by CNN, found Trump and his adult sons liable for fraud, leading to the cancellation of the Trump Organization's business certification.

Engoron's decision stemmed from Attorney General Letitia James' successful motion for summary judgment, which asserted that Trump and his associates were legally liable for persistent New York state law violations.

Judge Engoron noted that the financial statements provided by the Trumps to lenders and insurers over approximately a decade were demonstrably false, and he unequivocally accused them of engaging in fraudulent activities.

As Newsweek points out, James filed a $250 million lawsuit against Trump last year. In her case, the New York Attorney General accused Trump of misrepresenting his business assets for financial benefit. Since Judge Engoron's ruling did not settle all the elements of James case, it will go to trial next week, that is if Trump's lawyers don't get their way with a request for a delay.

This ruling represents a considerable setback for Trump and a clear rejection of his claims that he had not inflated the values of his assets, including golf courses, hotels, and properties such as Mar-a-Lago and Seven Springs, in financial documents used extensively in business transactions.

As reported by Forbes, the legal consequences that Trump and his business may face at trial are substantial. Attorney General Letitia James has sought a range of penalties, including: A five-year ban on commercial real estate acquisitions, restrictions on officer and director roles, and an approximately $250 million fine.

In its investigative report, Forbes uncovered staggering allegations against Trump's financial conduct. The Attorney General's office claims that Trump had inflated his net worth by an astounding $3.6 billion, as disclosed in court filings.

This figure was characterized as a "conservative" estimate. The lawsuit contends that Trump employed these exaggerated asset values to inflate his net worth by anywhere from $1.9 billion to $3.6 billion annually between 2011 and 2021.

Key to these allegations was Trump's alleged false reporting of the value of his properties, such as Trump Tower and Mar-a-Lago in Florida, which were purportedly valued as private residences rather than as social clubs, according to the lawsuit.

As reported by CNN, Trump's team contested the allegations of fraudulent asset valuation. They claim that the values presented were accurate, grounded in Trump's perspective as a "creative and visionary real estate developer who sees the potential and value of properties that others do not."

Donald Trump's attorney, Christopher Kise, emphasized that the case fundamentally revolves around "successful business transactions." In response to the ruling, Trump's attorneys decried it as an "outrageous decision" that was "completely unhinged from the facts and governing law."

Forbes, known for its meticulous evaluation assessments, currently estimates Trump's net worth at $2.5 billion through its real-time tracker. Forbes had previously exposed Trump's efforts to misrepresent the size and value of his real estate properties, including exaggerations regarding the size of his Manhattan penthouse, an issue cited in Attorney General Letitia James' lawsuit.

As this complicated legal saga continues to unfold, it will have significant implications for Trump, his business, and the broader political landscape. And undoubtedly, we will continue to hear Trump deny every last accusation and ruling.