Trump’s Civil Fraud Case
Former President Donald Trump was found liable for conspiring to manipulate his net worth in a civil fraud case this past Friday.
The decision comes after New York Attorney General Letitia James sued Trump in 2022 because she believed that he was altering his net worth on financial statements. She alleged that Trump was manipulating the statements in an effort to receive tax and insurance benefits for the Trump Organization.
Trump was ordered to pay $355 million plus interest in response to this case. According to The Hill, it is estimated that Trump’s payment could surpass $450 million.
The New York Attorney General stated that Trump will have to pay the court or secure a financial bond in the next 30 days. According to The New York Times, this transaction will not cause Trump to declare bankruptcy because the majority of his wealth is held in real estate which is worth more than $450 million. This ruling comes as Trump is currently in the lead to secure the 2024 Presidential Election Republican nomination.
Aleksei Navalny Dies
Aleksei Navalny, a fierce oppositionist of Russian President Vladimir Putin died on Friday. According to the Russia Federal Penitentiary Service, he was 47 and was found dead in the Russian prison where he was currently serving a sentence until at least 2031.
It was reported by the Russian Federal Penitentiary Service that Navalny was feeling unwell after a walk and collapsed leading to his death. However, no official cause of death has been announced yet. Navalny was serving his sentence at a special regime penal colony at the time of his death. That is considered to be one of the highest security prisons in Russia.
Navalny was known for challenging Putin’s leadership and promoting democracy. He led protests on the streets of Russia and utilized social media as an effort to draw attention to Putin’s actions.
In response to his advocacy, Navalny endured physical attacks, a poisoning in 2020, and spoke about his fears of being assassinated. In February 2021, he was sentenced to 3.5 years in prison after returning from Russia to Germany after being poisoned. In March 2022, he was sentenced again to 9 years for embezzlement and fraud. According to the New York Times, international observers believed that this sentence was “politically motivated and a scam”. The sentence that Navalny was currently serving was for extremism against the government. He was scheduled to serve for 19 years.
Trump’s NATO Comments
On Feb. 10, former president Donald Trump made comments concerning NATO, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, and Russia. In a campaign rally in South Carolina, Trump showed support for Russia to do “whatever the hell they want” to any NATO member country that does not satisfy the NATO spending guidelines, reports CNN. His comments suggest that if Trump were to be reelected this fall, he would not necessarily respect NATO’s core collective-defense clause.
Trump continued, “NATO was busted until I came along. I said, ‘Everybody’s gonna pay.’ [NATO member countries] said, ‘Well, if we don’t pay, are you still going to protect us?’ I said, ‘Absolutely not.’ They couldn’t believe the answer.”
He asserted that “one of the presidents of a big country” asked him if he would defend the U.S. ‘s NATO allies if an invasion by Russia were to occur. Trump informed his audience, “In fact, I would encourage [Russia] to do whatever the hell they want. You got to pay. You got to pay your bills,” he stated, referring to the United State’s NATO allies.
President Joe Biden weighed in on his political opponent’s comments in a campaign video. “[Trump’s comments make] it clear that he will abandon our NATO allies,” Biden stated. “He intends to give Putin a greenlight for more war and violence, to continue his brutal assault against a free Ukraine, and to expand his aggression to the people of Poland and the Baltic States [which is] appalling and dangerous.”
Trump defended his comments after receiving backlash. He reiterated his opinion at another rally in South Carolina: “Look, if they’re not going to pay, we’re not going to protect. OK?” His continued support of his opinion demonstrates his very real intention of supporting a Russian attack on the United States’ non-paying NATO allies if he were to assume the presidency.
During his 2016-2020 term in office, Trump had “privately threatened multiple times to withdraw” the US from NATO, the New York Times reports. He has previously described the alliance as “obsolete,” demonstrating his stance on the alliance. Another presidential term for Trump could lead to, at the very least, tension on behalf of the United States within the international alliance.
