In a striking financial turnaround, according to Breitbart, former President Donald Trump's net worth has reportedly eclipsed $6 billion after a significant business merger, positioning him among the world's financial elite even as he grapples with hefty legal fines. The merger of Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG) with a publicly-traded entity and the subsequent legal challenges paint a complex picture of Trump's financial landscape.
The saga began with TMTG accomplishing a long-awaited merger, a process that spanned over two years and concluded on Monday. This strategic move was aimed at bolstering Trump's business portfolio and reinforcing his foothold in the social media domain.
The Nasdaq Welcomes DJT
Following the merger's completion, the shares of the newly formed company started trading on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol DJT on Tuesday. This listing marks a significant milestone in Trump's post-presidency business endeavors, attracting wide-ranging attention from investors and political observers alike.
With an ownership exceeding 60% in TMTG, Trump clinched roughly a 58% stake in the merged entity. His share, valued at about $3 billion according to recent market prices, underscores the monumental gain in his net worth, a testament to the merger's success.
Stake with a Catch
The shares come with a six-month lock-up period, an arrangement preventing immediate selling, which aims to stabilize the company's market performance post-merger. However, there's provision for potential waiver allowing Trump to leverage his shares against legal financial commitments, showcasing a blend of business acumen with legal strategizing.
Bloomberg's recent acknowledgment of Trump joining the ranks of the world's 500 richest people, with an estimated fortune of $6.4 billion, juxtaposes against the backdrop of substantial legal financial obligations arising from two high-profile cases.
Mounting Legal Fines
The legal landscape for Trump is fraught with financial implications, as he faces fines nearing half a billion dollars from separate legal battles. These fines stem from a New York civil fraud case and a defamation lawsuit by E. Jean Carroll, showcasing the formidable challenges confronting Trump beyond the business world.
A pivotal moment came with a New York appeals court ruling that necessitated Trump to post a $175 million bond within ten days for appealing a civil fraud judgment. This directive underscores the significant financial stakes embedded within Trump’s legal endeavors.
Trump's Defiant Response
Reacting to the ruling, Trump showcased a blend of compliance and defiance. “It will be my honor to post [the bond],” Trump avowed, reflecting his readiness to meet the court's demands while simultaneously criticizing the judicial process and implicating political motives behind his legal challenges.
He elaborated on his commitment to securing the appeal bond, criticizing Judge Engoron and framing his legal battles within a broader narrative of political interference purportedly orchestrated by the Biden administration.
In his statements, Trump articulated a perception of being targeted for electoral purposes, suggesting that these legal challenges were part of a broader attempt to undermine his political viability amidst prevailing national issues.
A Tumultuous Financial and Legal Odyssey
In conclusion, the unfolding saga of Donald Trump's burgeoning net worth amidst escalating legal fines encapsulates a multifaceted narrative. It combines impressive financial milestones with the palpable tension of ongoing legal battles, reflecting a life under the relentless scrutiny of both the market and the judiciary.
As the story continues to evolve, it highlights the intricate interplay between wealth, power, and the law, defining Trump's continuing legacy in American public life.
Last week, Martin Greenfield, a celebrity tailor who survived the Holocaust, passed away at the age of 95, according to Fox News.
"Holocaust survivor, American icon, beloved by his congregational family, his abiding faith was a source of inspiration and blessing," an online obituary from Hampton Synagogue rabbis published by the New York Times reads.
"To his dear wife Arlene, children, Jay and Tod and to the entire family, our heartfelt sympathy."
Learning His Craft
Greenfield reportedly learned to embroider during his time as an Auschwitz prisoner, as reported by the New York Jewish Week.
After ripping the shirt of a Nazi soldier, he received sewing instruction from another prisoner. After mending the discarded shirt, he subsequently began to wear it.
"The day I first wore that shirt was the day I learned clothes possess power," Greenfield wrote in his 2014 memoir, "The Measure of a Man," as quoted by New York Jewish Week.
"Clothes don’t just ‘make the man,’ they can save the man. They did for me."
His Start in the United States
His occupation as a floor boy at the GGG clothing factory commenced in 1947, when he immigrated to the United States, according to the website of Martin Greenfield Clothiers.
"Martin went to night school to learn English, got his citizenship, and worked at the factory for 30 years, becoming the production manager," the company's website states.
"In 1977 after his employer decided to shut down the factory Martin purchased it and established Martin Greenfield Clothiers, producing clothing for businessmen and grooms, as well as presidents and celebrities."
Famous Customers
Frank Sinatra, former Presidents Obama and Trump, and NBA legend Shaquille O'Neal were a few of the most prominent individuals Greenfield ported in suits.
In addition to dressing U.S. presidents, Greenfield's suits appeared in films and television programs, including "The Great Gatsby" and "Wolf of Wall Street," both of which featured Leonardo DiCaprio, and "Joker," in which the film's protagonist, Joaquin Phoenix, wore one of his suits.
According to an Instagram post by his sons Jay, Tod, and David, Greenfield passed away on March 20.
In the post, the son said that his father "survived the atrocities of the Holocaust with his humanity intact, living his life delighted to meet everyone he encountered with his infectious smile."
Greenfield's Family
The Daily Mail reports that Maximilian Grünfeld was Greenfield's given name at birth. On August 9, 1928, he was born in the region that is presently western Ukraine, formerly a part of Czechoslovakia. According to the British publication, the Holocaust claimed the lives of his father, mother, and two sisters.
Two out of his three sons are expected to assume leadership of his business, as reported by the Daily Mail.
According to the Hampton Synagogue's website, Rabbi Marc Schneier paid tribute to Greenfield during Saturday morning services.
A Democrat National Committee campaign call with members of the press revealed that Democrats are panicking over the candidacy of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., which has gained enough traction to possibly be a spoiler for President Joe Biden in 2024.
The call happened right after Kennedy chose tech entrepreneur Nicole Shanahan as his vice presidential candidate during an Oakland, California rally.
The call included Rep. Robert Garcia (D-CA), Pennsylvania Lieutenant Gov. Austin Davis, and Michigan state Sen. Mallory McMorrow.
"We are doing everything in our power to get President Biden and Vice President Harris reelected. It's critical that we take seriously every possible obstacle to that goal. And let me be clear, that's exactly what Robert F. Kennedy is in this election. He's a spoiler," Davis said.
Conspiracy theorist
"Him being in the race means that there is a greater likelihood that Donald Trump will become president again," McMorrow said.
The politicians on the call pointed out Kennedy's vaccine skepticism, which was shared by Shanahan.
Garcia called him a "tin foil hat conspiracy theorist" in regard to vaccines, particularly COVID-19 vaccines.
Shanahan has an "anti-health" agenda, he further said.
Spoiler campaign
"He's turning to Trump mega-donors to really support this, really, spoiler campaign. I think he's likely interested in trying to get Donald Trump elected. Maybe that's what this is about. And many of us are not sure, but he is someone that should not be taken seriously as a serious person. I mean, certainly his campaign is quite dangerous," Garcia said.
The reference to Trump mega-donors probably refers to Timothy Mellon, the Mellon banking heir who has given millions to Trump-supporting groups. Last year, Mellon also donated millions to Kennedy-backing super PAC American Values 2024.
"The truth is that he was drafted into this race by Donald Trump's top supporters and is being financed in this race by Trump's largest donor. That isn't merely a coincidence," Davis said.
"He has no realistic path to victory in Pennsylvania," he added. "All he can do is take away votes from President Biden and make it easier for Donald Trump to win, and we simply can't afford to let that happen."
All about Trump
Davis also said Kennedy was "targeting" Black people with his theories and was not an ally of the Black community.
McMorrow later added, "We cannot afford Donald Trump to be back in the White House, which is what is going to happen if people don't see RFK for what he actually is, which is Donald Trump with a Kennedy name slapped on him."
With Kennedy in the race, he gets 11% of the vote, and Trump beats Biden by 2%.
Two days after the murder of Laken Riley, the mayor of Athens, Georgia praised sanctuary policies that he publicly insists are not in effect, according to damning e-mails.
The exchange between mayor Kelly Girtz, a Democrat, and Clarke County Sheriff John Q. Williams - obtained by Immigration Reform Law Institute (IRLI) - shows the two were principally concerned with public backlash over Riley's murder, rather than accepting accountability.
Mayor's emails exposed
The contents of the e-mails are not a complete shock given manipulative public statements from Girtz, who gushed with fake empathy at a press conference where he claimed Athens was not a sanctuary city.
“Trauma affects us all,” he added. “And I understand in the wake of a great tragedy like this, we are all deeply hurt and everybody expresses their hurt differently.”
In his private e-mails, Girtz made a similar use of platitudes to avoid confronting the issue, telling Williams he was focused on "comfort" and "unity."
The e-mails, however, suggest the city leaders were primarily concerned with their own "comfort" and self-preservation.
Williams lamented that he was being blamed for the actions of his predecessor, Ira Edwards, who made it a policy not to honor ICE detainers without a warrant for another crime. Sheriff Williams asked the mayor to clear up whether or not Athens is a sanctuary city and say so publicly.
The mayor responded with liberal obfuscation and mush about "unity," first telling Williams that there is no single definition of a "sanctuary city."
"Humane"
Girtz went on to showcase the mind of a complete ideologue, sharing his belief in the "humane" approach to immigration enforcement, which Girtz justified on the contentious basis that migrants commit less crime than American citizens.
“I support the detainer policy as one that is both humane and following the well-documented propensity of immigrants in the U.S. to be less criminally inclined than the native-born population," he said. Girtz criticized the practice of detaining "undocumented persons who have not committed an offense for which no legal resident would be held, simply because a person is undocumented [emphasis added.]"
Clearly, Girtz is not prioritizing his own residents, who he has chosen to sacrifice for the sake of his insane liberal agenda.
Sheriff Williams isn't in the clear, either: he campaigned against arresting illegal immigrants, saying he didn't want to contribute to a "culture of fear."
The people of Athens were let down by their leaders, but the failure goes all the way up to the White House.
Biden can't even say that Riley's killer was an illegal immigrant - but mayor Girtz would call that "humane."
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
The state of Colorado is moving forward on a preliminary step to "gun confiscation," according to a column by David B. Kopel, research director at the Independence Institute, in Complete Colorado.
That's even though a long list of other states in recent years rejected the same idea.
Key to Colorado's agenda is that the state Senate, House, and governor's office are all controlled by Democrats and other leftists.
The issue is the mandate for banking institutions to use a special code when someone purchases a gun.
The identifier is called a merchant category code, and Florida, Utah, Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, Texas, Utah, West Virginia, and Wyoming all have defeated similar proposals over the last year or so.
However, Kopel pointed out, the group now called the Brady Campaign, a "gun confiscation lobby," has announced, "The first problem is to slow down the increasing number of handguns being produced and sold in this country. The second problem is to get handguns registered. And the final problem is to make the possession of all handguns and all handgun ammunition—except for the military, policemen, licensed security guards, licensed sporting clubs, and licensed gun collectors—totally illegal."
Kopel, in testimony to lawmakers, explained the category code plan, "has no plausible utility in its purported purpose of preventing gun crime before the fact. Instead, the bill’s only utility is in service of gun confiscation."
He added, "Proponents say that an MCC specific to firearms dealers will help track suspicious purchases so that authorities can intervene. The government will know exactly (who) is buying firearms and how frequently. Proponents stated in a letter to the U.S. Treasury Department and Department of Justice: 'We believe that implementation of the new MCC code for gun stores could enable financial institutions to identify and report potentially illegal gun sales to law enforcement — helping reduce gun trafficking, straw purchases, and transactions structured to evade the mandatory multiple sale reports required by firearm retailers.'"
But he cited the extensive application process that already exists for someone purchasing a gun, including a four-page federal form.
And he added, "Although not plausibly valuable for crime prevention, the proposed MCC bill would be a handy tool for the ultimate objectives of the gun confiscation lobbies. In their dream world of house-to-house gun confiscation, the customer lists from sporting goods stores would identify the first persons to target."
Kopel noted the law doesn't allow that right now, but "the confiscation lobbies and their political allies are also strong advocates of packing the Supreme Court to nullify the right to arms. With the right election results, the court-packing could be accomplished in the next session of Congress, or soon thereafter."
And he warned the political majority in Washington changes, so the law easily could "be weaponized against the favored groups of some of the bill’s proponents, including anti-police protesters, Marxists, unlawful aliens, and the various organizations and their donors that support both such types of persons."
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
Red flag laws have been flaring across America, as someone can complain he or she has a "fear" of someone else, and a judge without even contacting the target can order his or her guns confiscated.
Promoters claim it is a way to protect the public, but in reality, what it has done is forcibly disarm law-abiding citizens multiple times.
Those statutes so far have been based state by state, but Joe Biden, in his war on self-protection, now has launched a plan for a national "red flag center."
Which, two experts have argued, he didn't have the constitutional right to do.
It is John R. Lott Jr., chief of the Crime Prevention Research Center, and Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., who have written at the Federalist that Congress, controlled by Democrats at the time, provided authorization for the president to hand out grants to states with those red flag laws.
"But never was he authorized to establish a federal red flag center," they explained.
They note that Kamala Harras bragged about Biden's new "National Extreme Risk Protection Order Resource Center."
She said the goal is to see to the "effective implementation of state red flag laws" and "keep guns out of the hands of people who pose a threat to themselves or others."
But Biden has "confused" "grants" for state programs with "an entirely new center."
The state programs already are raising questions, they note.
Under ordinary laws, they explain, "If you worry that someone is dangerous, you can tell the police your concerns. If the police agree that there is a 'reasonable' chance the person is a danger to themselves or others, mental health professionals will evaluate the individual. If the professionals give their consent, an emergency court hearing is held. A lawyer is provided to those who cannot afford one. Judges have recourse to various options, such as outpatient mental health care or driver’s license suspension. Gun confiscation or involuntary commitment may also be options, but only after going through the proper legal process."
Red flag laws bypass routine restraints, the charge.
There "a judge acts solely on the basis of a written complaint. He never talks to the person who made the complaint or the person against whom it was made. States vary on how quickly hearings must occur, but they all require that they take place within a month after one’s guns are taken away. But the steep cost of legal representation often deters defendants from seeking counsel, as lawyers can charge upwards of $10,000 for a hearing."
Only 29% of the public, they note from survey evidence, support such extremism.
They point out that suicides are not necessarily prevented, as there are methods not involving guns. And violence isn't always prevented as a criminal can drive a car into a crowd and injure.
And, they found, "Allowing for easy gun confiscation can leave good, law-abiding people defenseless. Andrew Pollack, who lost his daughter in the 2017 Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in Parkland, Florida, recently had an Extreme Risk Protection Order used against him by a neighbor in rural Oregon. When Pollack finally had his hearing in court, the judge didn’t even need to hear a defense because there was no evidence that Pollack had threatened anyone. Unfortunately, while disarmed, he faced a mountain lion outside his home. His dog tangled with the mountain lion, requiring 50 stitches on his side. As is virtually always the case, there was no punishment for the neighbors bringing the false claim."
A report at Liberty Nation explained, "Considering the hostility with which government at all levels have often viewed the private ownership of firearms, such laws are, of course, ripe for potential abuse."
And the report noted Massie's reaction was blunt, on social media: "What the hell is this evil? A Federal Red Flag center? We did not authorize this."
The report charged, "The anti-gun lobby was likely hopeful that red flag laws would facilitate a sort of slow-moving gun-confiscation program, but media investigations have shown that such laws are, in fact, rarely used – hence the creation of this new resource center, one can assume. According to the Associated Press, only four ERPOs were enforced in Chicago between 2020 and 2022, while there were 8,500 shootings resulting in 1,800 deaths during the same period. Red flag laws were used eight times in New Mexico over the same two years – the state had 600 gun homicides. Massachusetts used red flag laws 12 times and had about 300 fatal shootings."
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
Joe Biden's record on border security isn't that good – as he essentially ordered it wide open and invited millions of illegal aliens to invade. Now taxpayers already have paid billions and American cities still are struggling to meet the demands for financial help.
His economy has left Americans facing inflation of more than 18% since he took office, and struggling to pay their grocery bills.
His presentation of America to the world has left the door open for multiple wars to erupt.
So for his campaign this year, something else had to be used, and a report from the National Pulse explains that has been "fearmongering" concerning "threats about an alleged danger former President Trump and his supporters pose to 'democracy.'"
Actually critics have said Democrats are the ones deconstructing democracy because they want to banish Trump, and others, from the 2024 ballot, so voters would not, in fact, be able to choose their leader.
As part of that fearmongering, Jill Biden, in a campaign stop, has compared the conservative desire to rid public schools of gay porn, and have the schools focus on educational basics like reading, history, writing, and math to Naziism.
She was speaking at an event for the Human Rights Campaign when she delivered her rant.
"Rights are being stripped away. Freedoms are eroding. More and more state laws are being passed…Just last night, we had to fend off more than 50 anti-gay amendments that Republicans tried to force into the government funding bill… they served only one purpose: to spread hate and fear," she claimed.
"History teaches us that democracies don’t disappear overnight. They disappear slowly. Subtly. Silently. A book ban. A court decision. A 'don’t say gay' law," she continued, citing Florida's new law establishing parental rights in education that does not, in fact, even say "don't say gay."
She added, "Before World War II, I’m told, Berlin was the center of LGBTQ culture in Europe. One group of people loses their rights. And then another, and another. Until one morning you wake up — and you no longer live in a democracy."
The report said her comments "Appear to be part of the Biden camp’s wider 'full Hitler' strategy. With the Biden government’s mishandling of the border crisis and the failure of Bidenomics, the Biden campaign and the Democrats have little to run on beyond fearmongering ... ."
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
A new poll reveals Joe Biden's pressure campaign on Israel – to give up on its pledge to destroy Hamas and make sure that terror threat does not reappear in the near future – is backfiring on Biden.
Israel has pursued, militarily, Hamas ever since last Oct. 7 when the terror group invaded Israel and killed some 1,200 civilians, often in brutal butchery that included beheading babies and burning whole families alive.
Biden, while originally pledging support for America's longtime Middle East ally, recently has been putting pressure on Israel to let the terrorism go.
The new polling by RMG Research, founded by Scott Rasmussen, was produced in partnership with Gideon300, a public affairs agency.
"This data reveals that voters are squarely opposed to any proposal that would force Israel to make a deal with terrorists, or those who support terror," said Matthew Faraci, president of Gideon300.
"At the beginning of this survey, a slim majority favored the U.S. brokering a deal involving the Palestinian Authority. However, after learning about the PA's alignment with Hamas, voters dramatically switched their opinion, and – in the end – a strong majority across all parties opposed such a deal. "
The polling revealed the biggest seismic shift was among Democrats. Their opinion changed a "stunning" 30 points.
Significant changes also registered among independents and Republicans.
"Elected representatives in both parties should look past the noise and pay close attention to data revealing where the public is on this issue," the poll report said.
The survey included 1,000 general election voters has an accuracy of +/- 3.1% at a 95% confidence interval.
It reports that initially, 55% of American voters favored encouraging Israel to reach a deal with the terrorists, including 27% who strongly favored it.
That, however, plunged when voters learned the Palestinian Authority wanted to form a unity government with the terrorists in Hamas, including giving cabinet positions to those terrorists.
At that point, only 10% strongly favored pressuring Israel to make a deal, and only 30% had any sort of favor for that idea.
It revealed that a majority now say the Palestinian Authority and Hamas are part of the same terror cartel, given the PA's expressed desire to include terrorists in a unity government.
The Democrats, exhibiting the biggest flip-flop went from 73% pushing Israel for a peace deal with the terrorists to 47%.
Support among independents dropped from 47% to 28% and among Republicans, the support dropped from 38% to 19%.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
Nearly all private school students are gaming the college-admissions exams by obtaining doctors' notes – stating they have ADHD or another handicap – since those allow them extra time to finish the questions, according to a new report.
"I get requests for ADHD testing accommodations all the time," Dr. Camilo Ortiz, a clinical psychologist and professor at Long Island University, said in at interview with the New York Post.
Parents, she said, end up "none too happy" if she doesn't agree, and added, "They're getting really creative with it — it’s ADHD, or anxiety, or depression that leads to migraines that supposedly disrupts the testing.
"It’s not hyperbolic to say that almost everyone is doing it."
The report noted students are getting the "bogus" notes in order to "score extra time in standardized testing exams."
Those testing requirements now are being reinstated by many colleges, after there was a period when they were de-emphasized.
The report noted that some "diagnoses" can score a student 50% extra time to finish the exams and that can mean "a 200-point boost to an SAT score."
The various testing programs allow students extra time, but they require documentation from a health professional of the "disability."
The Post reported hearing from "students, parents, teachers, psychologists and college admissions counselors who confirmed that the system is rife with abuse."
And it said the abuse appears to have increased just recently as Yale and Dartmouth both announced they were using test scores again.
The report noted Christopher Rim, founder of college counseling firm Command Education, confirmed families are "1,000 percent" manipulating the accommodations for unfair advantages.
"There are definitely unethical families out there who are trying to take advantage of this system," he said in an interview with the Post.
The schemes, he said, should raise questions.
"A student at a private school in Manhattan who all of a sudden gets an accommodation starting in 11th grade can look a little suspicious, because how do these kids get through school from kindergarten to 11th grade getting straight As, without needing any accommodations?"
The report pointed out Paul Rossi, a teacher at the $65,000-a-year Grace Church School in Manhattan, confirmed it's "quite a racket. Educational psychologists rake in a pretty penny for diagnoses."
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
Disney is dropping its lawsuits against Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, apparently giving up its fight against his decision to pull the massive corporation's special status as its government that was granted to the Magic Kingdom years ago.
The fight over Disney's authority to run the Reedy Creek Improvement District, which essentially made it its government, erupted because the company attacked the state for trying to protect children in schools from the influences of an LGBT ideology.
Disney officials repeatedly blasted the state for what critics, inaccurately, have called a new "Don't Say Gay" law that doesn't say that. It just, as its name states, provides "Parental Rights in Education."
The state of Florida responded to the attack by canceling Disney's Reedy Creek authorities and replacing it with a new state board to govern the district, putting Disney on the same level as other companies in Florida.
Now a report from the Daily Mail reveals Disney is dropping its legal actions opposing DeSantis' moves.
The report called the decision "a major win" for the new board overseeing the land of Disney.
"The settlement agreement on Wednesday includes Disney acknowledging eleventh-hour deals it made with the outgoing Reedy Creek Improvement District are now null and void," the report said.
At the time the new state district was being created, Disney reached special deals with the old Reedy Creek board, which it controlled, to take over a long list of governmental functions under the new board.
The report noted, "Walt Disney Co. made these last-ditch efforts in an attempt to solidify property rights and grant the theme park additional powers as DeSantis appointed a new board to oversee the area and hold the corporation accountable to laws and taxes in Orlando."
It was then-Disney CEO Bob Chapek who publicly attacked the governor's policies on education and specifically his plans for protecting parental rights in education.
"No corporation should be its government," DeSantis' communications director, Bryan Griffin, said of the action on the lawsuits.
He said, "Moving forward, we stand ready to work with Disney and the district to help promote economic growth, family-friendly tourism, and accountable government in Central Florida."
The report said the settlement sees Disney acknowledging the invalid nature of its special deals with the now-defunct Reedy Creek district.
The new district is the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District Board.
Disney, long a staple for children's entertainment, in recent years, has gone more and more "woke," injecting social agendas into its products, which frequently have been huge disappointments commercially.