Hedge-fund manager Scott Bessent — viewed as in the running to become Treasury secretary in a second Trump administration — on Wednesday defended the Republican presidential nominee’s policies from the charge that they would boost inflation.
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NY state is demanding more information on Trump’s $175 million appeal bond in civil fraud case
NEW YORK (AP) — Days after former President Donald Trump posted a $175 million bond to block New York state from imminently collecting on a huge civil fraud judgment, state lawyers Thursday called for more information on the bond’s bona fides.
State Attorney General Letitia James’ office filed papers giving Trump’s lawyers or the bond underwriter 10 days to “justify” the bond — essentially, to show that the company can make good on it. That could mean disclosing more about the collateral Trump provided.
A hearing was set for April 22.
One of Trump’s lawyers, Christopher Kise, said James was trying to provoke a “baseless public quarrel in a desperate effort to regain relevance” after an appeals court last month significantly cut the amount of the bond needed to hold off collection.
“Yet another witch hunt!” Kise wrote in an email.
A message seeking comment was left for the underwriter, Knight Specialty Insurance Co.
The bond, posted Monday, at least temporarily stopped the state from potentially seizing Trump’s assets to satisfy the more than $454 million that he owes after losing a lawsuit trial. The case, brought by the Democratic attorney general, alleged that Trump, along with his company and key executives, defrauded bankers and insurers by lying about his wealth.
The ex-president and presumptive Republican nominee denies the claims and is appealing the judgment.
By posting the bond, Trump aimed to stop the clock on enforcement of the judgment during his appeal. But it hasn’t gone entirely smoothly.
First, the court system kicked back Monday’s filing for more paperwork, including a financial statement from Knight Specialty Insurance. That was filed Thursday, showing that the company has over $539 million in assets and related reinsurer Knight Insurance Co. Ltd. has over $2.1 billion.
Then James’ office filed notice that it “takes exception to the sufficiency” of the bond — a move that judgment winners can make to get more information from out-of-state underwriters, in some circumstances.
Knight Specialty Insurance is a Wilmington, Delaware-based part of the Los Angeles-based Knight Insurance Group.
The attorney general’s notice doesn’t request specific information. But “justifying” generally means demonstrating that the underwriter is financially sound and able to pay the bond amount if the judgment is upheld.
A state appeals court also has held, in an unrelated case, that there needed to be a showing that a bond was “sufficiently collateralized by identifiable assets.”
Knight Insurance Group Chairman Don Hankey told The Associated Press Monday that cash and bonds were used as collateral for Trump’s appellate bond.
Eric Trump, a son of the former president and a top executive in his company, said in a social media post Thursday that the bond was backed entirely by cash.
The attorney general’s objection “is just another example of the absurdity and foolishness that have been the underlying theme throughout this circus of a case,” the younger Trump wrote on X, former Twitter.
He and his brother, a fellow Trump Organization executive vice president, Donald Trump Jr. were also defendants in the fraud suit. They were found liable and ordered to pay $4 million apiece.
All told, the judgment against Trump, the sons and other defendants totals more than $467 million, growing daily with interest.
___
Associated Press writers Michael R. Sisak in New York and Brian Slodysko in Washington contributed.
Donald Trump’s Crypto Portfolio Soars to $7.5 Million, Fueled by TRUMP Coin’s Ascension and Ethereum Gains
After the former 45th President of the United States, Donald Trump, saw his cryptocurrency holdings exceed $5 million, just ten days later, the value of Trump’s digital asset collection has escalated to $7.5 million. This increase is largely due to $4.66 million emanating from the cryptocurrency he holds called TRUMP, which has experienced a significant […]
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Donald Trump’s Cryptocurrency Portfolio Tops $5M, Thanks to $2.9M in Trump-Branded Tokens
Just recently, the 45th President of the United States, Donald Trump, has expressed a neutral stance towards bitcoin, stating he could live with it “one way or the other.” Meanwhile, Trump’s holdings in crypto assets have seen a significant increase in value. A substantial portion of his digital wealth is currently in a digital currency […]
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Trump’s NATO comments stir up a political storm as Russia keeps quiet
Former U.S. president Donald Trump pictured during a meeting with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg at Winfield House, London on Dec. 3, 2019.
NICHOLAS KAMM | AFP | Getty Images
Former U.S. head of state and presidential candidate Donald Trump stoked the ire of U.S. lawmakers and international leaders, after remarking he would not protect NATO countries from Russian attacks if they lag on their membership payments.
Speaking at a rally in South Carolina on Saturday, Trump said that, as president, he warned NATO allies that he “would encourage” Russia “to do whatever the hell they want” to a member country that didn’t meet its defense spending guidelines.
Trump, who has a long history of criticizing the trans-Atlantic military alliance, recounted a time when an unspecified president of a NATO member challenged him on his threat not to defend them from a potential Russian invasion if they failed to meet NATO’s target of spending at least 2% of their gross domestic product on the military.
“You didn’t pay, you’re delinquent. … No, I would not protect you. In fact, I would encourage them to do whatever the hell they want. You got to pay. You got to pay your bills,” Trump said.
The U.S. has historically had the largest number of military personnel out of all NATO countries, counting 1.35 million troops in 2023, according to Statista.
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Trump has been accused of entertaining close ties with Russia during his first presidential mandate. The Kremlin declined to address Trump’s remarks.
“I am still [Russian President Vladimir] Putin’s press secretary, but not Trump’s,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters, according to Reuters.
Top Western officials, as well as both Democratic and Republican lawmakers, sharply criticized Trump’s comments. U.S. President Joe Biden, who is running for a second term, described Trump’s remarks as “appalling and dangerous.”
“Sadly, they are also predictable coming from a man who is promising to rule as a dictator like the ones he praises on day one if he returns to the oval office,” Biden said Sunday in a statement.
Trump is vying to clinch the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, facing off against former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley.
In an interview with CBS, Haley said Sunday that “the last thing we ever want to do is side with Russia.”
She added that the NATO alliance “allows us to prevent war.”
Former Republican presidential candidate Chris Christie also criticized Trump’s comments, saying in an interview with NBC News on Sunday that “this is why I’ve been saying for a long time that he’s unfit to be president of the United States.”
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan (not seen) hold a joint press conference after the North Atlantic Council meeting held at the NATO Headquarters in Brussels, Belgium on February 7, 2024.
Dursun Aydemir | Anadolu | Getty Images
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said the alliance stands “ready and able” to defend all allies and any attack would be met with a “united and forceful” response.
“Any suggestion that allies will not defend each other undermines all of our security, including that of the US, and puts American and European soldiers at increased risk,” Stoltenberg said in a statement.
“I expect that regardless of who wins the presidential election the US will remain a strong and committed NATO Ally,” he added.
NATO’s spending target
NATO’s 31 members, which include the U.S., Canada, France, Italy, Turkey and the U.K., agreed in July last year to spend at least 2% of their GDP on defense, firming up a previous goal.
A report released by NATO last year showed only 11 of the then-30 member alliance were spending 2% of GDP or more on defense. The defense spending target is not a requirement and many countries have sought to ramp up their military spending since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
NATO’s so-called Article 5 mutual defense clause means that an attack against one NATO member is considered an attack against all allies.
The European Union’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, said Monday that the alliance cannot be dependent on the impulses of the U.S. political leadership.”
“NATO cannot be an ‘a la carte’ military alliance … depending on the humor of the president of the U.S.,” Borrell said when asked to respond to Trump’s comments, Reuters reported.

Germany’s Foreign Office on Sunday posted “One for all and all for one” on its English-language X social media account, supported by the hashtag “#StrongerTogether.”
Polish Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz said Sunday via X that NATO’s motto of “‘one for all, all for one’ is a concrete commitment.”
“Undermining the credibility of allied countries means weakening the entire North Atlantic Treaty Organization. No election campaign is an excuse for playing with the security of the Alliance,” he added.
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Haley’s donors include investor Paul Singer. Trump’s include Mellon heir and oil mogul.
Wealthy Americans have been voting for White House hopefuls with their wallets, and the latest disclosures reveal their big contributions to the candidates’ main super PACs.
These political action committees are allowed to take in unlimited amounts from individuals, corporations, labor unions and other PACs.
Former President Donald Trump’s super PAC is called Make America Great Again Inc., while his Republican rival Nikki Haley has SFA Fund Inc., with SFA short for Stand For America. President Joe Biden’s main super PAC is Future Forward, also known as FF PAC.
The top donor to Trump’s super PAC in 2023 was Timothy Mellon, an heir to the Mellon banking fortune who contributed $10 million during the year. Other big donors were former WWE Chief Executive Linda McMahon, who served in Trump’s cabinet, and Patricia Duggan, whose ex-husband was the former CEO of Pharmacyclics, a biotech company that was bought out for $21 billion in 2015. Their donations are shown in the chart below.
Top 2023 donors to super PAC backing Trump
Name | Amount given in 2023 | Home state | Brief bio |
Timothy Mellon | $10,000,000 | WY | Heir to banking fortune |
Linda McMahon | $5,250,000 | CT | Former WWE CEO |
Patricia Duggan | $5,250,000 | FL | Ex-wife of former Pharmacyclics CEO |
Timothy Dunn | $5,000,000 | TX | Oil tycoon |
Diane Hendricks | $5,000,000 | WI | Co-founder of roofing-supply company |
Source: Filing with FEC to meet a Jan. 31, 2024, deadline
Another notable 2023 donor to MAGA Inc., who gave a smaller but still sizable amount, was Home Depot
HD,
co-founder Bernie Marcus. He made a contribution of $1 million, according to a disclosure filed with the Federal Election Commission to meet a Wednesday deadline.
The top donor to Haley’s super PAC in 2023, contributing a total of $10 million, was Jan Koum, the co-founder of WhatsApp, which is now owned by Facebook parent Meta Platforms
META,
Behind him were hedge-fund founders Ken Griffin and Paul Singer, who each gave $5 million, according to SFA Fund Inc.’s Wednesday disclosure.
Related: Ken Griffin’s spokesperson says he gave $5 million to super PAC backing Nikki Haley
Top 2023 donors to super PAC backing Haley
Name | Amount given in 2023 | Home state | Brief bio |
Jan Koum | $10,000,000 | CA | Co-founder of WhatsApp |
Ken Griffin | $5,000,000 | IL | Hedge-fund founder |
Paul Singer | $5,000,000 | NY | Hedge-fund founder |
James Davis | $2,505,000 | MA | Owner of shoe company New Balance |
Patrick G. Ryan | $2,500,000 | MN | Chair of construction company |
Shirley W. Ryan | $2,500,000 | IL | Wife of founder of insurance giant Aon |
Source: Filing with FEC to meet a Jan. 31, 2024, deadline
Other notable 2023 donors to Haley’s super PAC were venture capitalist Tim Draper and Warren Stephens, CEO of financial firm Stephens Inc., who each gave more than $2 million.
From MarketWatch’s archives (April 2023): Hedge-fund billionaire Paul Singer still sees dangerous ‘bubble securities, bubble asset classes’ in markets
The top donor to Biden’s super PAC in 2023, giving $2.5 million, was hedge-fund founder James Simons, as shown in the chart below, which is based on Future Forward’s filing on Wednesday.
Top 2023 donors to super PAC backing Biden
Name | Amount given in 2023 | Home state | Brief bio |
James Simons | $2,500,000 | NY | Hedge-fund founder |
Fred Eychaner | $2,000,000 | IL | Owner of radio stations |
Jeffrey Katzenberg and family trust | $2,000,000 | CA | Hollywood mogul |
LIUNA PAC | $1,000,000 | DC | Political arm of laborers union |
Jeff Worthe | $1,000,000 | CA | Real-estate executive |
Deborah Simon | $1,000,000 | IN | Heir of shopping-mall mogul |
Source: Filing with FEC to meet a Jan. 31, 2024, deadline
Now read: Trump leads Biden in 7 swing states and is favored on handling the economy: poll
And see: Haley says Trump’s new 10% tariff would mean ‘raising taxes on every single American’

After Donald Trump’s decisive win in the Iowa caucus and two opponents dropping out and endorsing him – Vivek Ramaswamy and Ron Desantis – it’s becoming clear who the Republican nominee will be. All the while, two stocks have seen strong rallies on Trump’s chances to make his return to the White House, and they could continue higher following the New Hampshire primary, where Trump is the hands-down favorite.
Let’s take a look at each.
Digital World Acquisition Corp.
Digital World Acquisition Corp. (NASDAQ:DWAC) is a special purpose acquisition corporation (SPAC) that is trying to merge with the former president’s Trump Media & Technology Group, which is behind the Truth Social app.
Digital World’s stock has surged over 175% since Trump’s win in Iowa, including a rally of over 88% yesterday. While the valuation of the combined company may be getting a bit rich, there’s no telling where traders could take it going forward, especially if the merger with Truth Social closes.
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Rumble Inc.
Rumble Inc. (NASDAQ:RUM) is an online video-sharing platform that has set itself apart from competitors by allowing people to share anything that they believe in without the fear of being restricted or taken down. This has resonated well with conservative voices who said they were removed or shadow-banned on other platforms.
Rumble’s stock has surged more than 60% since Trump’s win in Iowa, including a rally of more than 15% at the start of trading today. Yesterday’s rally of more than 36% was helped by announcement of a partnership with Barstool Sports.
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Trump NFTs trading volume spike following DeSantis endorsement of Trump’s re-election moves
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