A Democratic judge last year sided with New York Attorney General Letitia James in a lawsuit alleging that former President Donald Trump and his companies committed fraud to inflate the value of their assets.
On Monday’s “The Daily Show,” former comedian Jon Stewart discussed the current state of Trump’s civil fraud case, focusing on the Republican front-runner’s appeal and accompanying multimillion-dollar bail. .
Stewart argued that President Trump’s alleged overestimation of his wealth is “not without victims” and that anyone who engages in similar behavior in pursuit of profit is a perfect crime. He further implied that it was immoral, if not immoral.
New York Post and online critics
intimate Stewart may have a phantom victim of his own this week.
Stewart lashed out at the accusations of hypocrisy on Wednesday. However, his defense completely failed, as there was no enthusiastic audience ready to burst into laughter at a moment’s notice.
Stewart’s critique
“What did Mr. Trump actually do to get this fine?” Stewart said Monday, referring to the $454 million appellate bond that a state appellate court imposed on Mr. Trump.
knocked down This week it hits $175 million.
“Well, it turns out that for 10 years, Trump illegally inflated the value of real estate whenever he wanted to get a loan or make a deal. For example, his 11,000-square-foot penthouse. It was hinting that it was a 30,000 square foot penthouse,” Stewart continued. “Everyone does it. Because my license doesn’t say I’m 5 feet 7 inches tall. It says I’m 30,000 square feet tall.”
Stewart said Letitia James “knew that the value of President Trump’s real estate was inflated because he undervalued the very same property when it came time to pay taxes. This was all a lie.” “It was part of a sophisticated real estate transaction.”
The host emphasized that overestimation is “not a victimless crime.”
Mr Stewart suggested banks were clearly being repaid at low interest rates and were suffering. He also suggested that if the person seeking the loan had made a “more honest assessment”, they might have lost out because “money is not infinite.”
According to the host, when it comes to the investment community, “As long as you and your shitty friends are involved in the pursuit of profit, there are no rules that can’t be bent, no principles that can’t be broken.” [are] Make money. ”
Mr Stewart criticized
On Tuesday, podcast host Tim Poole dug up a 2014 New York Times article.
article It concerns Stewart’s sale of a 6,280-square-foot penthouse in New York City to financier Parag Pande for $17.5 million. The article said Stewart purchased the apartment in 2005 for $5.8 million.
pool
tweeted“Did @jonstewart commit fraud when he sold his penthouse for $17.5 million? NY listed the market value as $1.8 million [and] AV is about 800k. ”
new york post
captured At Mr. Poole’s suggestion, we obtained the assessor’s records for the year of sale, which showed that the estimated market value of the property was only $1.88 million. The paper said the appraiser’s actual valuation was even lower, at $847,174.
The paper claimed that Stewart did exactly what he accused Trump of doing on Monday. In other words, it “significantly reduced property taxes calculated based on the assessor’s assessed value.”
The newspaper said that the New York state appraiser’s valuation of Stewart’s former penthouse was “used by New York State Attorney General Letitia James in valuing Trump’s private and personal property and then inflating those assets. “These are the exact same citation methods and metrics used to indict Mr. Trump.”
Parag Pande apparently sold the property in 2021 for just over $13 million, at a loss of about 26%.
Sara Rumph of Mediaite
was suggested It said it was unfair to suggest Mr Stewart had “overestimated his wealth” rather than the “staggering 829%”.
Rumpf said the Post and other critics are concerned about different types of real estate, including the property’s actual market value, taxable value, and “documentation of the value of the property submitted to the lender for the purpose of securing a loan.” He argued that they might be confusing their values. with intent to mislead.
Rumpf also argued that large discrepancies between appraised value and actual market value are common, and in Stewart’s case, buyers were willing to pay $17.5 million.
The Post later changed the title of the article.
from “Jon Stewart Found to Have Overvalued His New York Home by 829% After Blaming Trump’s Civil Lawsuit as ‘Victimless'” He profited by overvaluing his New York home by 829%, while labeling it as “no victims”.”
Stewart lashes out
Representatives for “The Daily Show” host did not respond to The Post’s request for comment, but Stewart said
tweeted Wednesday evening: “Oh my god!! I got caught doing something that doesn’t even look like Trump!”
“What I need to do now is set up a fraudulent university, steal confidential documents, bankrupt a casino, pay hush money, seize genitals, discriminate in housing, cheat in golf, and incite riots. I think that’s all you need to do and you’ll respect me!” Stewart added.
Critics pounced after Stewart threw more stones from the glass house.
Tim Poole doubles down
write“my brother[.] You sold a property in New York worth 1.8 million to someone for 17.5 million, and they lost 4 million because of it.[.] and paid taxes on the assessed value of 748,000. “When it came time to pay his taxes, he underestimated his wealth.”
Blaze TV host Mark Levin
tweeted“You make stupid claims when you’ve been caught red-handed. According to you, you’re a liar, a cheater, a hypocrite, and you’re arrogant about it. Does that sound familiar, Johnny?”
“They told us that others also had to pay their ‘fair share’.”
I have written Investigative reporter James O’Keefe. “Oh, what a tangled thread they weave!”
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