Trump Says Letitia James Trying to ‘Destroy’ New York With His $355M Fine

Former President Donald Trump has claimed that New York Attorney General Letitia James is a “communist” attempting to “destroy” New York state by fining him $355 million.

Trump argued in a Truth Social post on Thursday night that the fine, which came as a result of James’ business fraud lawsuit against the ex-president and his companies, was “unconstitutional.”

The Context

New York State Supreme Court Justice Arthur Engoron ordered Trump and his companies to pay a total of $354,868,768 last Friday, having found the former president liable for fraudulently misrepresenting the value of his business assets to obtain financial benefits like favorable loan terms. He was also banned from doing business in New York for three years.

Trump’s two adult sons, Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr., were banned from doing business in New York for two years and ordered to pay penalties of $4,013,024 each, while former Trump Organization Chief Financial Officer Allen Weisselberg was ordered to pay $1 million.

The former president is expected to file an appeal and has repeatedly protested his innocence. Trump argues that the lawsuit is part of a larger political “witch hunt” that aims to stop him from winning the November election. He is also facing 91 felony charges across four separate criminal cases.

James, who has frequently been attacked by Trump since launching the lawsuit in late 2022, has urged Engoron to block the ex-president from moving his business addresses from New York to Florida. She has also vowed to take possession of his New York properties, potentially including his signature Manhattan skyscrapers, if he fails to pay the fine.

What We Know

“This Communist is looking to destroy New York State with her unconstitutional fine of hundreds of millions of dollars on a perfect legally gotten and fully repaid loan,” Trump wrote in his Thursday evening post to Truth Social. “Can’t let this happen!”

Trump’s post was accompanied by an approximately one-minute video featuring clips of James speaking out against the former president. Moments included the attorney general calling Trump “crazy” and her pledging to fight any “attempt to bring Trumpism to New York City.”

There is no evidence that James, a registered Democrat, has ever been a communist. It is also unclear how a fine against the former president would “destroy” all of New York, although Trump and his allies have suggested that the judgment would drive business away from the state.

Newsweek reached out for comment to the offices of James and Trump via email on Thursday night.

Views

Hours after the fine was imposed, James celebrated the judgment against Trump as “a massive victory” and said in a statement that it was proof that “no matter how big, how rich, or how powerful you are, no one is above the law.”

“For years, Donald Trump engaged in massive fraud to unjustly enrich himself, his family, and his organization,” James added. “He may have authored ‘The Art of the Deal,’ but he perfected the art of the steal. Now, he is finally facing the consequences of his illegal actions.”

Former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen said that the ex-president was likely in “complete and total panic mode” during an MSNBC interview last week, speculating that Trump’s only “theory” for avoiding the penalty consisted of attempting to fight it from the White House after winning reelection in November.

Trump’s estranged niece Mary Trump wrote in a recent newsletter that her uncle’s appeal “will be a waste of time” and suggested that he may not even have enough cash to pay the $400 million bond required to launch it.

“Donald is obsessed with his net worth and he goes to great lengths to convince people he is enormously wealthy,” she wrote. “The urgency with which he clings to the false idea that he is richer, more successful, and more talented than he is serves to hide the truth–not just from us, but from himself–that he is, quite simply, a loser.”

Trump lawyer Alina Habba said in a statement emailed to Newsweek just after the judgement that Engoron’s decision was “a manifest injustice” and would “serve as a signal to every single American that New York is no longer open for business.”

Habba later vowed revenge against Engoron and James, saying in a Fox News interview that they were “not going to get away with it” and promising that Trump’s team would “come at them” in an unspecified way “until the truth comes out.”

What’s Next?

Engoron rejected an attempt by Trump’s legal team to pause payment of the fine on Thursday, writing in an email to Trump lawyer Clifford Robert that he had “failed to explain, much less justify, any basis” for the pause.

The decision means that the former president will now have to either pay the fine, which amounts to over $450 million including interest, or pay the $400 million cash bond required for an appeal. It is unclear whether or not he has the liquid assets to pay either, although his legal team has said that they are “prepared” to pay.

James has said that she is “very confident” that the judgment against Trump will stand if an appeal is launched.