Trump 'can’t easily sell' off his assets to pay the millions he owes: biographer

Faced with having to pay writer E. Jean Carroll $88.3 million in total damages as the result of two separate trials related to sexual assault and defamation, Donald Trump is facing an overwhelming cash crunch should Judge Arthur Engoron also slam him with millions more in penalties in the still-to-be-concluded financial fraud trial.

In an interview with former U.S. Attorney Joyce Vance, former Trump biographer Tim O'Brien speculated that the former president has approximately $600 million that he can tap into — but he could be looking at penalties close to $460 million that would devastate the former president if he is forced to pay up.

O'Brien, who has investigated Trump's financial status for years, claimed losing all that cash would be "a tough pill to swallow, even for somebody with Trump’s resources."

Speaking with Vance, O'Brien stated Trump may be worth close to the $3.1 billion that outsiders have estimated, but coming up with money will be no easy task and E. Jean Carroll's legal team may have to force the issue once all Trump's appeals are exhausted.

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"Only about $600 million or so of that amount is in highly liquid holdings like cash. He can’t easily sell his stakes in some real estate ventures, so he’ll have to extract the payment from his cash hoard, most likely," he explained. "But he’ll hate having to do that and will resent it. So, lawyers and prosecutors may have to file liens against some of his assets so E. Jean Carroll can be paid.

The biographer also suggested Trump fears losing his fortune more than he fears the prospect of jail time looming in the Georgia RICO trial and the two federal cases being brought by special counsel Jack Smith.

"That’s because massive amounts of money aren’t in play in those cases – just possible prison time. But I don’t think that means Trump still doesn’t fear and resent the possible outcomes in the federal and state cases; he certainly does. He’s afraid of being found guilty and of serving time; hence the carping about being a victim and all of the performance art targeting judges and the system," he stated before adding, "At its core, however, is fear. The system finally caught up to Trump — in his 78th year. It’s also still unclear whether he might successfully run the clock out on those prosecutions."

You can read more here at Vance's Substack platform.