NEW YORK — A seven-figure verdict, an eight-figure verdict and, now, a nine-figure verdict.
Donald Trump has been hit with all three in the past nine months, with Friday’s $354 million penalty for New York business fraud by far the most massive.
He is now on the hook for over $440 million in civil judgments as he heads toward the Republican nomination — and as he prepares for one or more criminal trials this year.
Those criminal cases could put him in jail. And in the meantime, his escalating troubles in his civil cases are packing a devastating financial punch.
Even for a man who claims to be a billionaire, $440 million is a potentially crippling amount of cash to turn over. Can Trump afford the judgments? When does he have to pay them? And what happens if he says he can’t — or if he outright refuses?
I wouldn’t be surprised if the Saudis pay his bills. Especially if they think that by helping out he might be able to win the election. In fact, owning the president of the US for only 500m USD seems like it could be worth it to many nefarious characters. The Saudis didn’t seem to have a problem doing a billion dollar deal with his son in law.