# NY AG Letitia James drops the (civil) hammer {On Trump & Family} \[9/21/2022\] **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Tags:** trump\ **Created:** [September 21, 2022, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-ag-letitia-james-drops-the-civil-hammer-on-trump-family-9-21-2022/971991 "2022-09-21T16:13:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 8
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2022, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-ag-letitia-james-drops-the-civil-hammer-on-trump-family-9-21-2022/971991/141 "2022-09-22T21:12:57Z")
> [@Aspenglow](#): > > The beauty of this case is, it’s all paper. Easiest case in the world to prove. Yep. I was talking the head dude- FBI 'natch- a Joint Organized Task Force , and he told me that they had indictments for murder, racketeering kidnapping, etc etc etc- but after witness murder and intimidation they were depending on the “99 counts of wire fraud and money laundering”. > [@ThelmaLou](#): > > I can’t see him being _ruined_ financially or even having to sell M-a-L. His worshipful minions will gladly impoverish themselves, go without food, eat their pets, even sell their children to Hillary Clinton in order to make sure he never has to poop anywhere but in a gold toilet. Sad but true. They seem to love being conned by this con-man. > [@JohnT](#): > > Donald Trump is so goddamned broke that he literally brokered a deal with the RNC to hold off on his narcissistic pursuit of 2024 by having the RNC pay his attorneys. He cons even them. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2022, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-ag-letitia-james-drops-the-civil-hammer-on-trump-family-9-21-2022/971991/142 "2022-09-22T22:09:10Z")
> [@wolfpup](#): > > He’s also boasted about their ignorance: “I love the poorly educated”. In case anyone thinks this is an exaggeration or a paraphrase, no. It’s a direct quote. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/Vpdt7omPoa0/maxresdefault.jpg "Trump in Nevada: 'I Love the Poorly Educated'") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vpdt7omPoa0) For context, this was during the Republican primaries in 2016. He’s in Nevada speaking in February of that year, discussing how he won the caucuses in that state decisively. “We won the evangelicals. We won with young. We won with old. We won with highly educated. We won with _poorly_ educated - **I love the poorly educated.** We’re the smartest people, we’re the most loyal people. And you know what I’m really happy about? Because I’ve been saying it for a long time. 46% were the Hispanics! 46%! Number One with Hispanics.” That’s a transcription from the 30 second clip after listening to its entirety. There’s the whole context. Draw your own conclusions. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2022, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-ag-letitia-james-drops-the-civil-hammer-on-trump-family-9-21-2022/971991/143 "2022-09-22T23:24:35Z")
[Trump calls Letitia James a ‘peekaboo’.](https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/donald-trump-letitia-james-lawsuit-b2172343.html) _In a second post, Mr Trump added: **“Attorney General Letitia ‘Peekaboo’ James,** a total crime fighting disaster in New York, is spending all of her time fighting for very powerful and well-represented banks and insurance companies, who were fully paid, made a lot of money, and never had a complaint about me, instead of fighting murder and violent crime, which is killing New York State.”_ Apart from the fact that it’s the most overtly bigoted thing he ever said, and he has said many, how dumb do you have to be to misspell that word? I am reminded of a certain classic movie scene. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/purk9KRXYzQ/hqdefault.jpg "Porky's") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=purk9KRXYzQ) ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2022, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-ag-letitia-james-drops-the-civil-hammer-on-trump-family-9-21-2022/971991/144 "2022-09-23T00:15:01Z")
> [@Akaj](#): > > IANA financial analyst and have no intention of doing the research, but my suspicion is that Trump’s net worth is a lot closer to zero than $3 billion. Whereas I’m pretty sure that his net worth is actually the lowest of any individual in history. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2022, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-ag-letitia-james-drops-the-civil-hammer-on-trump-family-9-21-2022/971991/145 "2022-09-23T01:45:51Z")
I am reminded of the Russian phrase, “Don’t do nothink funny. Have film of you with duck.” ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2022, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-ag-letitia-james-drops-the-civil-hammer-on-trump-family-9-21-2022/971991/146 "2022-09-23T01:49:19Z")
Let’s start a pool on where he will flee to. Russia? “Vladimir, old friend!” Cuba? “Trump Cigars!” Argentina? “Adolph was misunderstood!” Perhaps another thread. ---
**Author:** ![DWMarch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dwmarch/32/1010_2.png) [@DWMarch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DWMarch)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2022, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-ag-letitia-james-drops-the-civil-hammer-on-trump-family-9-21-2022/971991/147 "2022-09-23T04:51:01Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > He’s either a crook or a sap. Well, considering how he hires “the best people” and they _all_ seem to end up betraying him and/or ending up in jail, I’d say it’s six of one and half a dozen of the other. ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2022, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-ag-letitia-james-drops-the-civil-hammer-on-trump-family-9-21-2022/971991/148 "2022-09-23T13:55:20Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > > [@ThelmaLou](#): > > > > I can’t see him being _ruined_ financially or even having to sell M-a-L. His worshipful minions will gladly impoverish themselves, go without food, eat their pets, even sell their children to Hillary Clinton in order to make sure he never has to poop anywhere but in a gold toilet. > > Sad but true. They seem to love being conned by this con-man. > > > [@JohnT](#): > > > > Donald Trump is so goddamned broke that he literally brokered a deal with the RNC to hold off on his narcissistic pursuit of 2024 by having the RNC pay his attorneys. > > He cons even them. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/qdFLPn30dvQ/hqdefault.jpg "Kevin Bacon - Fraternity Paddle") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qdFLPn30dvQ) ---
**Author:** ![Horatius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horatius/32/3572_2.png) [@Horatius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatius)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2022, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-ag-letitia-james-drops-the-civil-hammer-on-trump-family-9-21-2022/971991/149 "2022-09-23T14:13:15Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > 45 can claim that his experts were feeding him bad information that he just signed off on, He can claim that, but there’s also an opportunity to rebut that claim. If there was ever a lawyer who told him that what they were doing was illegal, that kind of knocks out his argument. He can’t claim ignorance if he was told about this, even if he disagreed with the expert who told him it was illegal. As you pointed out, he’s the decider, and he _decided_ to go with the illegal advice, rather than the legal advice. ---
**Author:** ![Horatius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horatius/32/3572_2.png) [@Horatius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatius)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2022, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-ag-letitia-james-drops-the-civil-hammer-on-trump-family-9-21-2022/971991/150 "2022-09-23T14:24:44Z")
> [@Peter\_Morris](#): > > Apart from the fact that it’s the most overtly bigoted thing he ever said, and he has said many, how dumb do you have to be to misspell that word? This is actually what passes for clever amongst the modern racist idiots. They’re convinced no one could possibly figure out what he was _really_ saying. See also the history of “knee grow” during the Obama administration. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2022, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-ag-letitia-james-drops-the-civil-hammer-on-trump-family-9-21-2022/971991/151 "2022-09-23T14:41:34Z")
> [@Horatius](#): > > If there was ever a lawyer who told him that what they were doing was illegal, that kind of knocks out his argument. How would that advice ever come out? It would be covered by privilege. ---
**Author:** ![Zakalwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zakalwe/32/270_2.png) [@Zakalwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zakalwe)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2022, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-ag-letitia-james-drops-the-civil-hammer-on-trump-family-9-21-2022/971991/152 "2022-09-23T14:46:21Z")
The Cheeto tweets it out on his Truth Social account? “My lawyers kept telling me this was not something to be doing, but I know lawyering, maybe better than anybody and I told them they were wrong. This is business and I’m very much a genius about business, just look at all my money!” If he reveals it, it’s no longer privileged, correct? ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2022, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-ag-letitia-james-drops-the-civil-hammer-on-trump-family-9-21-2022/971991/153 "2022-09-23T14:51:26Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > > [@Horatius](#): > > > > If there was ever a lawyer who told him that what they were doing was illegal, that kind of knocks out his argument. > > How would that advice ever come out? It would be covered by privilege. > [@Zakalwe](#): > > The Cheeto tweets it out on his Truth Social account? > “My lawyers kept telling me this was not something to be doing, but I know lawyering, maybe better than anybody and I told them they were wrong. This is business and I’m very much a genius about business, just look at all my money!” > > If he reveals it, it’s no longer privileged, correct? There’s also the crime and fraud exceptions. ---
**Author:** ![Horatius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horatius/32/3572_2.png) [@Horatius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatius)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2022, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-ag-letitia-james-drops-the-civil-hammer-on-trump-family-9-21-2022/971991/154 "2022-09-23T14:52:14Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > How would that advice ever come out? It would be covered by privilege. Somebody may have written a CYA memo. “As per the discussions of 24 May, I must remind you that this scheme may be illegal…” If there is a discussion between three people, one of whom is a lawyer, can one of the two others voluntarily waive the privilege? I’m not sure, but I’d be willing to see the argument made. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2022, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-ag-letitia-james-drops-the-civil-hammer-on-trump-family-9-21-2022/971991/155 "2022-09-23T14:55:39Z")
> [@Horatius](#): > > If there is a discussion between three people, one of whom is a lawyer, can one of the two others voluntarily waive the privilege? The client “owns” the privilege and the attorney cannot waive it unilaterally. However, there are theoretical ways it could come out, including a reliance “advice of counsel” defense. ---
**Author:** ![Horatius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horatius/32/3572_2.png) [@Horatius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatius)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2022, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-ag-letitia-james-drops-the-civil-hammer-on-trump-family-9-21-2022/971991/156 "2022-09-23T15:19:54Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > The client “owns” the privilege and the attorney cannot waive it unilaterally. I meant, one of the other two. Essentially there would be two clients - can one client waive the privilege over the objections of the other client? There has to be a way for this to happen. If I was your employee, there’s no way you could be allowed to prevent me from ratting you out for a planned crime just by having your lawyer sit in with us every time we have a meeting. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2022, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-ag-letitia-james-drops-the-civil-hammer-on-trump-family-9-21-2022/971991/157 "2022-09-23T15:21:54Z")
> [@Pleonast](#): > > There’s also the crime and fraud exceptions. Those exceptions apply where the lawyer is participating in the proposed crime or fraud. If a lawyer in good faith gives an opinion that conduct X would be illegal, and advises against X, without any suggestion that the lawyer is involved in the illegal activity or is trying to find a way to help the client do the illegal activity, future crime exception to privilege wouldn’t apply to that advice. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2022, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-ag-letitia-james-drops-the-civil-hammer-on-trump-family-9-21-2022/971991/158 "2022-09-23T15:32:10Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > > [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > > > He’s either a crook or a sap. > > It’s hard to believe he would think his 11,000 sq ft apartment was 33,000 sq. ft. I’m no real estate developer, but even I would know the difference. - He thought it was 11,000 yards, not feet so he did the math. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2022, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-ag-letitia-james-drops-the-civil-hammer-on-trump-family-9-21-2022/971991/159 "2022-09-23T15:35:26Z")
> [@Horatius](#): > > There has to be a way for this to happen. If I was your employee, there’s no way you could be allowed to prevent me from ratting you out for a planned crime just by having your lawyer sit in with us every time we have a meeting. If you are an employee, you are either 1)also a client (and as you say, can waive the privilege, or 2) are not a client (and there is therefore no privilege) ---
**Author:** ![Buck\_Godot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/buck_godot/32/6573_2.png) [@Buck\_Godot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Buck_Godot)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2022, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-ag-letitia-james-drops-the-civil-hammer-on-trump-family-9-21-2022/971991/160 "2022-09-23T15:54:44Z")
> [@Horatius](#): > > I meant, one of the other two. Essentially there would be two clients - can one client waive the privilege over the objections of the other client? I’m not a lawyer so I may be wrong, but my understanding would be that the confidentiality only extends between the client and the lawyer and not between the two clients. So if in a meeting between the two clients and a lawyer, if client A said something incriminating, client B freely could rat on him to the Feds, but the lawyer could not confirm or deny client B’s accusations. However I don’t think client B could be subpoenaed to testify against client A against his will because that meeting would still fall under client B’s attorney client privilege. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-ag-letitia-james-drops-the-civil-hammer-on-trump-family-9-21-2022/971991.md?page=7) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-ag-letitia-james-drops-the-civil-hammer-on-trump-family-9-21-2022/971991.md?page=9)