A Court Ruling That Targets Trump’s Persona

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In ruling that Donald Trump committed fraud, a New York judge opened up yet another messy legal saga for the former president—and this one could have profound implications for both his holdings and his persona.

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Years of Lies

Donald Trump is a deals guy. He rode his image as real-estate mogul and a maestro of transactions first to pop-culture stardom, then to the White House. Now a judge has yesterday that Trump and his associates, including his sons Eric and Donald Jr., committed by toggling estimates of property values in order to get insurance and favorable terms on loans. The judge ordered that some of the Trump Organization’s “certificates,” or corporate charters, be canceled, and that a receiver be appointed by the court to dissolve some of its New York companies. This latest blow for Trump puts on record that his mythos of business acumen was largely built on lies.