The most recent legal setback for Donald Trump strikes at the core of his being, challenging his very persona.
For many years, he has presented himself as a brilliant businessman who achieved success in one of the most competitive places on earth.
He was able to recast himself as a reality TV celebrity and then as the president of the United States thanks to his image, which was inextricably linked to New York deal-making and strengthened by constant self-promotion.
The whole story put out by Mr. Trump, however, is called into question by Judge Arthur Engoron’s decision in a civil fraud case involving the inflating of property prices and falsifying on financial documents to secure better credit conditions. Rather, it presents him as a scammer and severely damages his riches and economic empire.
One of Donald Trump’s famous quotes is that “the mind can overcome any obstacle.” But what a barrier that is.
The decision severely limits the Trump Organization’s capacity to conduct business in New York. For three years, he has been prohibited from having any directorships, and during that period, his firm will also not be able to obtain loans from financial institutions that are registered with the city.
The pecuniary penalty imposed on him is substantial, totaling $355 million (£282 million; €329 million); when interest is included in, the amount rises to almost $450 million, well beyond his available funds. An independent monitor will still keep an eye on his company, and significant business decisions will also be approved by an additional independent director of compliance.
The Trump organization was saved from the corporate death penalty—the loss of its business licenses—in what may have been the sole silver lining for the outgoing president and Republican front-runner.
Mr. Trump has been referred to as Teflon Don because nothing seems to cling to him; for decades, he has appeared to bounce back from scandals and legal issues that may inflict others irreversible harm.
After he was found not guilty in many high-profile cases throughout the 1980s, mob leader John Gotti was the former owner of this nickname. However, the decision rendered today suggests that, like to Gotti, Donald Trump’s good fortune may be running out.
Judge Engoron cited the continued history of deception committed by Mr. Trump and the other defendants, as well as their lack of regret. The examples of fraud at the corporation spanning over ten years, according to him, “leap off the page and shock the conscience” in this instance.
Still, he said that the defendants’ “complete lack of contrition and remorse borders on pathological,” indicating that they were unable to acknowledge the wrongness of their conduct.
Mr. Trump has always envisioned himself amid Manhattan’s skyscrapers, having grown up the son of a real estate tycoon whose ventures included middle-class apartment complexes in the boroughs of Staten Island, Queens, and Brooklyn.
His status as a titan of New York real estate was cemented by a seven-year building frenzy from 1976 to 1983, which included the Trump Tower. In 1983, he told the New York Times, “Not many sons have been able to escape their fathers,” suggesting that he had already done so at the age of 37.
However, Donald Trump almost lost everything when he filed for many company bankruptcies in the early 1990s.
Rich Herschlag, the top engineer in the Manhattan Borough President’s office, collaborated with Mr. Trump and his group on the Riverside South project, which involved redeveloping an abandoned train yard on the Upper West Side, during this period.
According to him, it took “everything or damn close to everything” for Donald Trump to establish himself as a prosperous real estate developer and, in particular, to create an empire based on his father’s history.
However, he still needs to deposit the entire sum within 30 days or obtain an expensive bail if he wants to avoid paying the fine or having his personal assets taken while the appeal procedure is ongoing.
The former president would consider it an embarrassment to sell any of his valuable real estate in Manhattan, and he would not make this decision lightly.
Regardless of whether Donald Trump is able to bounce back from this financial setback, the result is certain to severely damage his wealth.
It is certainly a major loss for the ruling class in the city where he attained prominence while constantly feeling like an alien. and in New York real estate for almost 60 years.
