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Former President Donald Trump shared video clips of then-New York attorney general candidate Letitia James calling him “illegitimate” amid an ongoing civil trial after she filed a $250 million lawsuit against him and his company for alleged fraud.
Trump posted the clips to his social media platform, Truth Social, dating from 2018, where she called him an “illegitimate president” and promised to sue him if she won her election.
“America is in uncharted territory. We are angrier and more divided than we have ever been at any point in our history since the Civil War,” James said in the video. “At the eye of the storm is Donald Trump, ripping families apart, threatening women’s most basic rights. I’m running for attorney general because I will never be afraid to challenge this illegitimate president.”
The then-president also shared other clips in which she pledged to file suit against him and his companies, the Center Square reported.
After being elected in 2019, James immediately began looking into Trump’s business dealings.
Her accusations are just one of four indictments against the ex-president that have been filed in states all over the country, including New York, Florida, the District of Columbia, and Georgia.
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After James accused the former president of overvaluing his assets, Judge Arthur Engoron ruled in late September that Trump and his company committed fraud while building his real estate empire.
Speaking to Newsmax last week, Trump attorney Alina Habba refuted the notion that the former president’s legal team’s failure to request a jury trial in the fraud case was due to the fact that they “had this great option to have a box checked” but did not take it, calling the idea a “misconception.”
According to Habba, the case should not go to trial because it was brought under New York Executive Law 63(12), a “very narrow, not appropriately used section of the law” for consumer protection.
“It’s not this, and that is why we’re sitting here in front of a judge dealing with values of property, where real estate, anybody with real estate brains, anybody with real estate experience, even laymen, can understand that a tax assessment is not the same as the market value of your property, period,” Habba added.
A similar argument was made by a Trump spokesperson in a statement to Newsweek: “The Attorney General filed this case under a consumer protection statute that denies the right to a jury. It is unfortunate that a jury won’t be able to hear how absurd the merits of this case are and conclude no wrongdoing ever happened.”
WATCH:
Late last month, Engoron found that Trump had lied about his wealth and overvalued his assets to banks, insurers, and others.
According to James, Trump “inflated his net worth by billions of dollars” with the help of his children. Trump’s attempt to have the civil trial postponed was denied by a court of appeals in New York State.
As a form of punishment, Engoron ordered the revocation of several of Trump’s business licenses, making it difficult, if not impossible, for them to operate in New York.
However, a state appeals court judge halted the breaking up of Trump’s corporations but did not stop the civil fraud trial from continuing, CNN reported.
“We are very pleased the First Department upheld New York law and put a halt to any cancellation of business certificates, receivers or dissolution,” Trump attorney Christopher Kise said. “The trial court’s attempt to reach issues, entities and assets beyond the scope of this case has been suspended.”
CNN reported:
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Engoron had ordered Trump to propose potential receivers by October 26, which would begin the process of dissolution.
During the hearing, Moulton speculated that such a broad interpretation of Engoron’s ruling could mean LLCs holding the private homes of Trump and the other defendants could be at risk of being sold.
“(Engoron) clearly does not comprehend the scope of the chaos its decision has wrought,” Trump’s lawyers said in a court filing earlier in the day. “We’re not seeking delay. We’re not seeking anything but a fair trial, and these errors permeate the ongoing trial.”
