Or “Judge Orders Trump to Pay The Amount That Bankrupts Campaign,” as the Babylon Bee put it.
Trump also has a difficult struggle ahead of him. Andrew McCarthy writes at National Review that the appeals alone might cost Trump close to half a billion dollars between the two E. Jean Carroll cases and the Engoron verdict. Even for Trump, that is a significant amount. McCarthy remarks that there have been reports that a significant portion of Trump’s campaign finances have been used for legal bills, and he predicts that Trump will probably have to foot the bill for his appeals. Furthermore, the story quotes Richard Pildes, a constitutional law professor at NYU, who stated that a candidate cannot pay judgments or bonds posted for appeals using money from their campaign. It’s unclear if Trump has the money on hand or could sell enough assets to cover the expenses. And time is running out for him to submit.
Let’s introduce Elena Cardone. She is the spouse of $400 billion asset owner Grant Cardone. She has started a GoFundMe campaign, according to American Wire, to assist Trump with his legal expenses. The $355 million Engoron judgment is the explicit aim of the crowd-funding campaign.
Elena states on the GoFundMe page that the goal goes beyond just collecting money to settle the judgment. It is an appeal for solidarity among Americans who perceive the injustice done by the decision and the potential impact it may have on the whole nation.
“It should terrify all business owners and entrepreneurs that a business owner took out a bank loan, never missed a payment, paid the loan back with interest, and caused no financial harm to anyone, but the government went too far and fined the business owner $355 million.”
