A veteran legal analyst is warning that President Donald Trump’s personal fortune, estimated at several billion dollars, could be wiped out following a federal judge’s ruling that he is liable for damages caused during the January 6, 2021, Capitol Hill insurrection.
The attack unfolded as Congress convened to certify the results of the 2020 presidential election, which Trump had refused to accept. Legal commentator Sabrina Haake argued that a damages ruling against Trump personally could devastate his financial standing.
“Measuring the amount of corruption lining Trump’s pocket is like shoveling on a snowy day,” Haake wrote. “As of late January, Trump had pocketed upwards of $4 billion from untraceable cryptocurrency ventures, suspicious market manipulations, and outright bribery from foreign and domestic sources during his first year back in office.”
She added a pointed warning: “He’d better be thinking on how to hide it, because U.S. District Judge Amit P. Mehta has ruled that Trump. Is. Civilly. Liable for the damages he caused on January 6, 2021.” Last month, Judge Mehta denied Trump civil immunity in a carefully argued 79-page opinion.
Haake described the ruling as methodical, noting that it drew a sharp line between actions Trump took as a sitting president, which could qualify for official-act immunity, and actions he took as a candidate seeking to remain in power, which do not.
“Judge Mehta’s cautious 79-page ruling denied Trump civil immunity through a careful analysis largely devoted to distinguishing between Trump’s criminal actions as an office-holder (official-acts immunity), and his actions in seeking office, which were not official acts and therefore are not immune,” she wrote.
“The decision carefully followed the Supreme Court’s immunity ruling, and will allow claims against him from members of Congress and Capitol police officers to proceed to trial.”
The ruling has reignited a broader political battle over accountability for the attack. Rep. Barry Loudermilk, who chairs the new GOP Select Subcommittee on the January 6 assault, shifted focus toward alleged intelligence failures in the lead-up to the riot, claiming federal agencies had advance warning of potential violence.
“There was intelligence from both groups on the left and the right,” Loudermilk said. “Why wasn’t something done? Was it incompetency? I can’t believe that it’s that level of incompetency across several agencies.” Democrats pushed back sharply. Rep. Zoe Lofgren of California called Loudermilk’s framing “embarrassing” and accused Republicans of deliberately sidestepping the riot’s actual cause.
“What happened was that Trump incited a mob and asked them to come and attack the Capitol violently,” Lofgren said. The civil cases against Trump are now expected to move toward trial.
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