A Financial Reckoning for Donald Trump

John Cassidy: “That leaves Trump in a bind. In theory, he could take out a mortgage against some of his real-estate properties and use the proceeds as collateral for the bond, but they may well be encumbered by existing mortgages. (With a big private company like the Trump Organization, it’s impossible to know from the outside the true state of its finances.)”

“Another option would be to quickly sell some of his properties. But engaging in such a ‘fire sale’ would ‘inevitably result in massive, irrecoverable losses—textbook irreparable injury,’ Trump’s lawyers wrote in Monday’s filing. Yet another possible option would be to try and secure a loan or investment from a third party—but who would give Trump half a billion dollars on short notice?”

“All in all, though, it’s a big mess for the former president.”