Trump Throws Tantrum After Failing to Post Bond in NY Fraud Case

Nikki McCann Ramirez
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If there’s one thing Donald Trump hates more than losing an election, it’s people thinking he isn’t as rich as he claims he is.

On Monday, lawyers for the former president indicated he had been unable to secure the $464 million bond needed to appeal a massive New York civil fraud ruling against him and his company. The filing revealed that 30 underwriters declined to back the bond, which was worth 130 percent of the $355 million civil fraud judgment leveled against him and the Trump Organization in February.

Trump is pissed, and spent much of Monday night and Tuesday morning raging on Truth Social.

“The Bonding Companies have never heard of such a bond, of this size, before, nor do they have the ability to post such a bond, even if they wanted to,” he wrote in one post.

In another, he falsely claimed that Judge Arthur Engoron is breaking precedent by ordering the bond be paid before a defendant enters the appeal process. He “wants me to put up the ridiculous fine (I DID NOTHING WRONG!) before I get a chance to Appeal his crazed ruling – A first!” Trump wrote.

In reality, appeal security bonds are a common practice in civil courts throughout the country. The bond essentially guarantees that the individual would be able to pay the amount owed should they lose their appeal, and helps prevent individuals from indefinitely skirting penalties by delaying the enforcement of an order through the appeals process.

Trump knows this. Earlier this month, the former president posted a $91.6 million bond in order to appeal the ruling against him in a civil defamation case brought against him by author E. Jean Carroll. But his bond in the New York civil fraud case is more than five times as large, and while Trump has plenty of money tied up in real estate and other assets, without a backer to foot the bond he would likely need to sell properties in order to gather the funds to appeal the ruling.

“I would be forced to mortgage or sell Great Assets, perhaps at Fire Sale prices, and if and when I win the Appeal, they would be gone,” he said at one point in his rant.

“Judge Engoron actually wants me to put up Hundreds of Millions of Dollars for the Right to Appeal his ridiculous decision. In other words, he is trying to take my Appellate Rights away from me when I have already won at the Appellate Division, but he refuses to accept their already made decision,” Trump claimed.

Trump has not won an appeal on the case. In fact, several appeals submitted by his legal team before the final judgment were overturned or denied by New York courts, with other motions filed during the trial remaining unresolved.

Of course, as is typical of Trump’s social media ranting, the former president is accusing prosecutors and judges of overseeing election interference on behalf of his 2024 opponent, President Joe Biden. “If I weren’t running for President, and leading by a lot, none of this LEGAL LAWFARE would be happening. ELECTION INTERFERENCE! MAGA!!!” he raged.

Regardless of whether Trump appeals, he’s still going to have to come up with a whole lot of cash to satisfy the court, and New York Attorney General Letitia James has already stated that the state won’t hesitate to seize Trump’s properties as payment if that’s what it takes to get their bag.

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