Donald Trump, who posted a $91 million bond and has appealed the E. Jean Carroll lawsuit’s verdict, took a potshot at the author yet again in a campaign rally in Georgia on Saturday. Former Department of Justice lawyer Andrew Weissmann delved into the ex-president’s comments that could land him in yet another defamation lawsuit.
What Happened: “Now that Trump has found a sugar daddy to bail him out on his $91 M defamation judgment, he is on the attack again,” said Weissmann in a post on X, formerly Twitter. “Money is an insufficient deterrent here,” he said.
Carroll filed a first defamation lawsuit filed against Trump in November 2019 in the New York Supreme Court. The lawsuit related to allegations that the former president sexually assaulted Carroll in late 1995. Justice Robert Kaplan, who presided over the case, fined Trump $5 million in May 2023.
Carroll filed a second defamation lawsuit in November 2022, and then amended it in May 2023, bringing to the notice of the court the additional comments Trump made following the original verdict, both on a CNN town hall broadcast and Truth Social.
Following a three-hour deliberation in late January, a jury awarded Carroll $7.3 million in emotional damages, $11 million in reputation-related damages, and $65 million in punitive damages, totaling $83.3 million. Despite requests by Trump’s legal team to buy time to pay the fine, the judge did not budge. Trump on Friday posted the bond and appealed the verdict.
Throwing caution to the winds, Trump said in the Georgia campaign rally denied knowing Carroll. “$91 million based on false accusations made about me by a woman that I knew nothing about, didn’t know, never heard of. I know nothing about her. She wrote a book. She said things. And when I denied it — I said, ‘It’s so crazy. It’s false’ — I get sued for defamation,” he reportedly said.
MSNBC executive producer Kyle Griffin said, “One day after posting a $91 million bond that allows him to appeal the defamation judgment he owes E. Jean Carroll, Donald Trump might have defamed her again and opened himself up to a third lawsuit.”
Why It’s Important: Trump has all but clinched the Republican presidential nomination after the only other serious contender Nikki Haley dropped out of the race. Opinion polls also put him ahead of President Joe Biden in hypothetical two-way matchups.
The main hurdle that now stands between the former president and a potential second term is the slew of legal cases lined up against him. He now has only about two weeks to pay up the $464 million penalty he owes in the New York civil fraud case.
Trump’s cash position may not be adequate to foot the legal bill and fines and he may have to sell his real estate at “fire-sale” prices to honor the commitments, said his niece Mary Trump last week.
Reports suggested Trump met with Tesla CEO Elon Musk to seek campaign funding, although the latter has denied contributing to either party.
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