Donald Trump has been on the verge of losing millions for several years now. After a series of assault allegations and countless controversies during his presidency, the New York State attorney general's office is now investigating him due to "significant evidence" of fraud. In just one year, the former president lost $600 million from his initial $2.1 billion net worth. But according to an analyst, he might actually end up losing everything this time. Here's how.
Donald Trump Has Been Broke Before
Trump can't afford to lose his current case as he's likely to lose the rest of his fortune. But even if he does, it wouldn't be his first time being broke. In 1992, Washington Post published a story titled "Trump Went Broke But Stayed On Top." There, they quoted him telling model Marla Maples: "You see that man? [referring to a beggar along New York's Fifth Avenue] Right now he's worth $900 million more than me. ... Right now I'm worth minus $900 million." At that point, Trump didn't have the cash to pay his loans. Despite owning hotels, casinos, and an airline, he had hundreds of millions more in debt.
According to the article, Trump could have been advised to file for bankruptcy but bankers and investors kept making deals with him.His personal debt was then reduced by $750 million. That's over four-fifths of his total debt. "The system is broken," said an associate who helped Trump get away with his unpaid loans. "It's the system that gives power to the debtor where it shouldn't." Apparently, lenders would have recovered less had Trump filed for bankruptcy.
When asked about it, one banker said it was truly the "only practical solution" in the ordeal. "I did it because it was the only practical solution," he said. "This would be a really drawn out, very, very nasty process." On the other hand, Trump was proud of what happened. He was pretty cocky about it, actually. "They love me because I'm good and I'm honest," Trump said of the bankers. "I've developed a great respect for bankers." He also wrote in his autobiography Surviving at the Top that his "track record had allowed me to secure millions of dollars' worth of financing simply by signing my name."
How Donald Trump Could End Up Losing Everything
Investigative journalist David Cay Johnston said on MSNBC that this time, Trump might not be able to dodge bankruptcy. "Oh, it is possible that Donald, at the end of the day, will be left with nothing but his presidential pension and his union pension from his TV show, because those are the only assets he has that would be protected," he said. "And given that Donald brags about how much 'he loves money, he cares about money more than anything else,' that's his words, not mine, this is very troubling for him."
Johnson added that Trump "could lose not just the Trump Organization but his apartment, his mansion in Westchester County, his golf courses, Mar-a-Lago, all of that can be at risk in these both criminal and civil proceedings that are coming against him in a number of jurisdictions." That is "especially if the New York attorney general arranges to have his business put out of business" — a long-anticipated fall from grace.
How Much Cash Does Donald Trump Really Have?
According to 2020 filings by New York Attorney General Letitia James, Trump had $93 million in liquid assets at that time. Though he wasn't at all cash poor, he had far less money in the bank than his fellow real estate billionaires. He had exaggerated his wealth to lenders and bankers. So much for that "honesty." Forbes also revealed that Trump's team constantly tried to show them that he was worth a lot more. The magazine has always known it was unrealistic.
In 1982, Trump's lawyer Roy Cohn phoned Forbes to get his client a higher spot on the Forbes 400 list of the richest Americans. "I am sitting here looking at his current bank statement. It shows he's got more than $500 million in liquid assets, just cash." Cohn told journalist Jonathan Greenberg who recalled the conversation to Washington Post in 2018.
Forbes also recalled that during a 1990 cover story with Trump — amid the brink of filing for bankruptcy — The Apprentice star bragged about "never-before-seen cash flow numbers," as soon as they entered his office. "As we enter his 26th-floor office in Manhattan's Trump Tower, he is already on the attack: 'I'm going to show you cash flow numbers I've never shown anyone before,'" wrote the magazine. "He shows us more numbers attesting to a wealth of cash and negotiable securities but folds the page so we can't see the next column over."
