New York Attorney General Barbara Underwood sued Donald Trump, three of his children and his foundation in June, saying he illegally used the charity as a personal “checkbook” for his own benefit, including his 2016 presidential campaign and business.
On Thursday, Trump tried to use his persecution complex as a defense in the case claiming political bias was the motive for the charges, but a New York judge wasn’t having it.
“I don’t want to get involved with that,” New York Supreme Court Justice Saliann Scarpulla said at a hearing Thursday.
Trump’s lawyers asked the judge to dismiss the case on the grounds the lawsuit was politically motivated and argued that Trump and his children did not break any laws.
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“The allegations are what they are. Until you deny them I accept them,” the judge said.
The New York state attorney general sued Trump and his kids for engaging in systemic illegal activity and unlawful political coordination by using their “charity” as a family slush fund. With his defense shot down, Trump is not going to be able to beat the rap in what could be the first in a series of state-level lawsuits and criminal charges to come down on the president and his family.
(Additional reporting by Nathan Layne in New York)
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