The investigation and indictment of former President Donald Trump cost New York taxpayers upwards of $200 million, claims Trump’s second-eldest son, Eric.
“Every single business deal you’ve ever done – they went through everything,” said Eric during an interview with Newsmax. “They couldn’t find a single thing. So they do an indictment for a $130,000 payment, and they spend $200 million of New York City resources to get there – shutting down the city.”
The Manhattan grand jury responsible for the indictment subpoenaed the Trump Organization for 11 million documents as part of the investigation. In January, the court fined the Trump Organization $1.6 million (the maximum possible fine) for 17 tax crimes including conspiracy and falsifying business records.
Trump himself was indicted on March 30th on 34 felony charges related to a hush money payment made to a former porn star. He was placed under arrest on April 4th and pleaded not guilty to all charges before being arraigned. On the day of his arrest, as many as 38,000 NYPD officers were deployed to act as security for the Manhattan Criminal Court and other buildings in the area.
“Every single intersection was closed,” said Eric, who joined his father in flying straight to Florida after the arraignment. “The FDR was closed. There was an army around Trump Tower. There was an army around the courthouse. There were barricades all over New York.”
The man responsible for the exhaustive investigation and excessive security detail is New York County District Attorney Alvin Bragg, a Democrat who ran for office in 2021 on promises to indict the former president.
All the money and time he wasted on the Trump “witch hunt” would have been better spent on real issues like violence and homelessness, says Eric. “How many people in New York died because the entire NYPD wasn’t doing their job because they were dealing with Alvin Bragg’s political charade?”
Bragg’s prioritization of politics over people is an unfortunate but accurate representation of the state of the nation, continued the younger Trump. “Hundreds of thousands of people are leaving [New York City] but, yet, what is Alvin Bragg doing? He’s going after Donald Trump – a guy who’s winning the Republican nomination by 35 points right now…for a $130,000 payment, which was totally legal.”
As I wrote last week, the indictment seems to have boosted Trump’s popularity. His re-election campaign received more than $4 million in donations during the 24 hours immediately following the announcement of the indictment and the latest polls show Trump victorious in match-ups against President Joe Biden and potential GOP rival Ron DeSantis. While an indictment or conviction does not prevent him from running in the 2024 election, the ongoing legal struggle is sure to inconvenience his campaign. The next in-person hearing is scheduled for December 4th in New York. Trump also faces criminal investigations in Atlanta and Washington, DC.
“They want a tsunami of legal challenge to weigh over the president,” Eric complained to Fox News host Sean Hannity. “They think he’ll give up. My father will never give up!”
Sources:
Eric Trump to Newsmax: NY Spent $200M investigating Father
Trump Pleads Not Guilty to 34-Count Felony Indictment in Manhattan Hush Money Case
Original Link: https://punchingbagpost.com/eric-trump-my-fathers-indictment-cost-new-york-200-million/
