The idea that a rogue judge could exploit a rarely used law, intended to prosecute real-life fraud cases, in order to bring down the leading presidential candidate should indignation all Americans, regardless of party affiliation.
The New York anti-fraud statute in question, Executive Law 63(12), will be the focus of Judge Engoron’s decision this week. The statute is one of the toughest anti-fraud statutes in the country because it notably does not require a showing of intent to deceive to prove fraud.
That said, however, the few examples of case law that have existed since the late 1950s, when the statute was first adopted, show how courts have interpreted the statute.
In every single case except one, the courts found fraud only where it was real victims suffered from demonstrable damage following the fraud. (The one exception was a company that wrote college admissions essays for students, where the casualty was “the integrity of the educational process.”)
In the Trump case, on the contrary, not only were there no victims – there was no fraud. This is most clearly demonstrated by the fact that Trump’s lender, Deutsch Bank, never complained – let alone, even noticed – that he had been defrauded of the alleged $168 million that Letitia James absolutely insists she lost in an otherwise very lucrative business relationship with the Trump Organization.
No matter how rich and powerful the credit organization was, any bank that had allegedly been defrauded of nearly two hundred million dollars would have noticed and filed a lawsuit years before Letitia James developed a savior complex for big banks.
For New York State to conduct multiple investigations at the same time against the same man who is also the presidential front-runner reeks of bananas Republicanism.
It’s not as if Donald Trump is a private businessman, and this case came up in the ordinary course of business. He is currently the favorite to become the next president of the United States.
This is all part of a multi-pronged action against a man considered a threat to ruling elites, many of whom – like Reid Hoffman and Norm Eisen – are some of the biggest funders of these lawsuits.
For Judge Engoron to pretend to administer the rule of law fairly and faithfully is an affront to everything our justice system once stood for. This is not due process; what is happening in his courtroom is nothing more than a vengeful power grab by a despotic judge so clearly envious of Trump’s success in politics and business.
If Engoron orders the dissolution of President Trump’s business empire, a step far greater than even Letitia James has suggested, then it would destroy the prospect of doing business in New York State forever, and likely across the country – a devastating outcome , which no one should want, as it would surely end the American dream.
Do New Yorkers understand what’s at stake? Have they totally abandoned faith in capitalism, in free enterprise, in the American dream? Do they realize that their city will fail without visionary business men like Donald Trump?
There is no possibility, after this chilling precedent, that any business would ever want to set foot in New York State againa state that is already being bled dry by Albany for what little enterprising talent it has left amidst draconian taxes, regulations, DEI requirements and incubation of a climate of rampant lawlessness.
Trump didn’t hurt anyone, nor did he deceive anyone in his business dealings – the only crime he ever committed was running for president and telling the truth. Full disclosure: Both of these things are rights protected by the Constitution.
But Judges Engoron and Kaplan and Attorney General James – aided by his lapdog District Attorney Alvin Bragg – are letting their all-consuming hatred of one man literally destroy the country.
No sane society would allow any of them to occupy positions of authority: they have completely abandoned the Constitution and the rule of law they must pay the price for the irreversible chaos they have caused.
A healthy justice system would Never in a million years file an $83 million damages award to a broke, eighty-year-old sex columnist for defamation stemming from an alleged rape in which the plaintiff couldn’t even remember the most basic details, like the year he occurred, and waited nearly thirty years before filing suit once it became politically expedient to do so.
Interestingly, the recent change in New York State law that allowed E. Jean Carroll to take her lawsuit beyond the normal statute of limitations was made by a fanatical anti-Trump state legislator.
It is also interesting to note that the same funder of the Carroll lawsuit, Reid Hoffman, the co-founder of LinkedIn, is a major Democratic donor, who at the same time is also funding Nikki Haley’s excuse for a campaign.
These are not coincidences: this is clear election interferencebrought to you by the same forces that orchestrated the covid lockdowns, the George Floyd riots, and the myriad of election law rule changes in the run-up to the 2020 election that made Biden’s robbery, somehow the most unpopular in America history despite being the “president” to receive the highest number of votes ever, inevitable.
A “justice” system that values E. Jean Carroll’s reputation at $83 million would, under normal circumstances, trigger immediate calls for tort reform. In what universe do you find the life and work of E. Jean Carroll, who is now in his eighties – and therefore has little left of either – even close to being valued at $83 million?
His accusations are completely unfounded, which is why he delayed filing a lawsuit for thirty years until he found the political and financial support he needed from the left.
But such a striking figure is typical of a system that would also value Mar-a-Lago at $18 million. The rot in New York’s justice system runs deep, emblematic of the rot that plagues our society’s justice system, but the rule of law is violated there most flagrantly.
These judges, district attorneys and special prosecutors trample on every bit of judicial rule because they think they can get away with it. They mock the rest of us with contemptuous derision because they think we won’t stand up for our rights.
Let the clown hold up what the left has made of New York’s justice system as a harbinger for what can and will happen to the rest of the nation without a strong response from those on the right who wish to preserve our Constitution and the state of right in their true and original meanings.
Government of the people, by the people, for the people has become government of the lawyer, by the lawyer, for the lawyer – and in New York, this recipe now threatens to destroy what remains of a once free and Right.
Paul Ingrassia he is a constitutional scholar; two-time Claremont Fellow and serves on the board of advisors of the New York Young Republican Club and the Italian American League for Civil Rights. He writes a widely read Substack that is regularly published on Truth Social by President Trump. Follow him on X@Paolo Ingrassia, Substacks, Social Truth, InstagramAND Rhombus.