That’s why I speculated about a foreign billionaire, one who likely isn’t too friendly to the US. It wouldn’t be about the money, it’d be about owning the president.
The big problem with my scenario is that the amount Trump owes is really high, probably higher than it’s worth to gamble on him winning in November. Were Trump to actually cover the $400 million he claims he has, someone else coughing up the remainder seems a more likely bet, but in that scenario, Trump would likely feel less beholden, since he did actually cover most of it himself.
So, assume he doesn’t have the $400 million, but some lesser, but still significant amount. Where’s the break-even point for someone trying this bribe?
Being noticed wouldn’t bother Trump.
He would proudly declare that the Biden crime family, the deep state, and the corrupt judges all hate America…
So Trump is saving the country by standing up to their witch hunt, and at the same time cementing good relations with Russia, and also bringing peace to Ukraine.Good ol’ Vlad…he"s our best friend!
Putin cannot print Rubles to cover dollars, he would have to use foreign exchange reserves or revenue. What Trump needs is about 5% of Russia’s monthly trade surplus. I’m sure he could do it, but it’s not a completely trivial amount. I think the idea that Putin would do it is… fanciful. He’d like Trump back in power, but he has nothing to gain from Trump being in a financially stronger position. If a massive payment from Russia were detected, that would not help Trump’s chances of being reelected.
Sure, Trump could declare it openly, and lose those millions of potential voters who aren’t already Trump worshippers. Another reason why it’s not so likely. You might think Trump is totally immune to political consequences, but every nutty thing he’s done has had some consequences. If he’d handled COVID with any approximation of competence and decency, he likely would have easily won reelection.
Personally, I think Letitia James has struck a death blow to Trump, but he’s going to take awhile to bleed out. The woman is one of my top heroes.
Even pretty ignorant people can work out that if a foreign adversary is paying your debts, then they will control your foreign policy. MAGAts won’t care, but regular voters will.
I like to think about how it must be driving Trump absolutely nuts that the determined actions of a Black woman cost him over $450 million – increasing every day – and there’s not a damn thing the misogynistic orange racist can do about it except throw ketchup.
And she’s brave. With her face all over the papers, if I were her I wouldn’t risk traveling even now to Florida or Texas or half a dozen other states, let alone doing so if Trump is reelected.
She has a casita in Santa Fe anytime she wants a break.
Is there any way he can delay payment for a year through appeals or bonds, get elected, then get paid off by Putin? At that point, voters can’t do anything about foreign influence. And even if the payment has ballooned another $80M or whatever by then, it’s still a bargain for Putin to get sanctions dropped and the US out of NATO.
I think that’s why James has made it clear she’s going hard after assets with no delay if he doesn’t post bond. He can’t pardon himself from the judgment, but (forget even needing Putin) he can just steal money elsewhere. As you say, any semblance of propriety is going to be out the window if he’s reelected, far fewer “checks and balances” to stop him, to the extent that they rely on people he can replace.
Oh you poor innocent child. One bank CEO gave him a ONE HUNDRED MILLION dollars. “But it’s a loan, he got collateral.” Right. A hundred million here, a hundred million there; it all adds up.
Traceability? Trumpy doesn’t care. He’ll pull the same scam when this loan expires, or he’ll be dead. HE DOESN’T CARE.
As mentioned upthread, although the Axos guy is politically sympathetic, he has a fiduciary duty to shareholders for which he is personally exposed. With a judgment for fraud on the record, it makes it much more difficult for him to give Trump preferential treatment for a loan on anything other than justifiable commercial terms - even with good collateral, when the bank might be faced with the unenviable prospect of enforcement to take the collateral from a sitting President.
It may happen, but it’s not going to be easy for Trump, and the terms will make him bleed out the ears.
Finding a sympathetic billionaire with no fiduciary duty to investors will be challenging. Perhaps Musk will step up, in his crusade for “free speech”. But privately, I doubt even Musk is so “burn-it-all-down” that he thinks stabilizing Trump’s situation and helping him get reelected is favorable for the things he cares about.
I’ve always liked the full ‘quote’ (apostrophes because it could be from either Chinese or Greek philosophers; as far as I know, nobody knows): ‘The wheels of justice turn slowly, but grind exceedingly fine.’
The slowness if often frustrating, but it is often worth the wait. I won’t be satisfied in this case until money changes hands.
