Donald Trump inflated net worth by more than $2 billion in one year, New York attorney general alleges

Tom Winter and Zoë Richards

The former president routinely overstated his personal net worth to financial institutions, by as much as $2.2 billion one year, the attorney general’s office says.

According to calculations submitted by prosecutors, Trump routinely overstated his personal financial condition from 2011 to 2021, and he overstated his personal financial condition by comparable levels while he was in office.

They urged the court to consider "two simple and straightforward questions," specifically whether Trump's statements of financial conditions from 2011 to 2021 were "false or misleading" and whether defendants "repeatedly or persistently" used the documents to conduct business transactions.

In one instance, they argue, Trump valued undeveloped land at his golf course in Aberdeen, Scotland, based on an assumption that he could build and sell more residential homes than approved by local authorities.

Meanwhile, in the case of his leased property at 40 Wall St. in New York City, Trump at times valued it “at more than twice the appraised value,” they wrote.

Trump also inflated the value of his triplex apartment at Trump Tower by nearly tripling its actual square footage, an error that they argue “inflated the apartment’s value by approximately $100-$200 million each year from 2012 to 2016."

No publicity is bad publicity.

Amount of publicity this guy gets just by being himself is amazing whereas others need to work their asses off to get even a fraction it. Even his mugshot is news. Many were anxiously commenting online about the mugshot. It turned out fine. Not as embarrassing as was expected. I mean he tries to use everything that comes his way.

What he does is shameless but nothing new. Nothing that other past presidents haven't done. Only thing is that there use to be a decorum that was expected to be maintained. A façade. Trump smashed through this. He just threw open his closet for the nation to see. He is as incorrigible as one can afford to be. He revels in ugly state of affairs. No façade whatsoever. Oddly this makes him seem sincere whereas other candidates look pretentious.

He brought forward that 'something' of America which always lay just beneath the surface. He tapped into that reservoir that gave him his MAGA fanatics and those individuals from financially weak belt of rural America who were usually neglected by presidential candidates. That is they were not taken seriously. Their voting strength was not expected to sway the tide.

We know his agenda clearly. We either support him or detest him. If he gets a shot to run for the presidency again, he will be a formidable candidate. There was an exaggerated anti-trump wave that handed over the presidency to Biden. We need a similar wave or we need to keep him away from running. There never was a pro-Biden wave.

All these judicial procedures seem to be an attempt by both parties to keep him away. They know they have a weak election coming up and certainly America has no candidate who compares with this guy in how much fascination or detestation he is capable of generating within the American public.

Oh! America, what have you gotten yourself into?