Trump’s Unfounded Claims About Trump Media & Technology Group

TFD – Delve into Trump’s unsubstantiated claims and allegations regarding the Trump Media & Technology Group.

The New York Stock Exchange “badly” wanted the Trump Media & Technology Group, but the former president told a story on Monday saying he chose not to list the company because businesspeople “are treated too badly in New York” and “don’t want to be attacked by a thug like this horrible attorney general that we have in New York.”

One issue exists. The narrative is nonsensical.

First the facts: The Nasdaq, the stock exchange where the Trump Media & Technology Group is listed, has its headquarters located in New York. Actually, Manhattan, a borough of New York City, is home to both the Nasdaq and the New York Stock Exchange. Put another way, when a firm is listed on the Nasdaq, it becomes subject to all of the regulations and political control that would have been applicable to it if it had been listed on the NYSE.

Jonathan Macey, a professor of corporate law, corporate finance, and securities law at Yale Law School, described Trump’s story as “just mind-bogglingly nonsensical.”

In an interview, Macey talked about the story and laughed a lot. According to him, it would be the same as someone saying they would only shop at the Bloomingdale’s store next door in New York rather than Macy’s in order to avoid persecution in that city. He uttered, “Like, what?”

“I hope someone who is advising President Trump tells him that investors on the Nasdaq Stock Market are protected by the same investor protection laws that protect investors on the New York Stock Exchange,” Macey stated.

At a news conference, Trump—who is currently the front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination—told the tale and blasted Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg and New York Attorney General Letitia James for pursuing legal action against him. (You can read more about the significant developments of the day in those instances here.)

He claimed that “the people at the stock exchange are very, very upset” that he decided against listing the company on the NYSE and that “the top person is mortified, can’t believe it.” Regarding this said NYSE executive, he stated, “He said, ‘I’m losing business because of New York – because people don’t want to go on the New York Stock Exchange and they don’t want to be in New York.'” So you can ask them about it,” he said.

But the “top person” at the NYSE isn’t a “he.” Both Lynn Martin, the president of the NYSE since 2022, and Stacey Cunningham, her predecessor, are female. Furthermore, Sharon Bowen, a woman, serves as the NYSE board chair.

A representative for NYSE declined to comment on Trump’s alleged chat. The spokesman did state that Trump’s business will be welcomed in the exchange.

The world is in awe of America’s capital markets, and investors gain from seeing more, not fewer, firms listed on open markets. All forms of capital formation should be able to operate in New York. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has deemed the business combination between Digital World Acquisition Corp. and Trump Media and Technology Group to be effective. We would welcome the company to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange, the spokesperson stated.

Tuesday is when the company, which runs the social media network Truth Social, is supposed to start trading on the Nasdaq.

Unfounded allegations regarding Biden’s struggles

Trump also restated numerous well-known, unfounded assertions regarding his court fights.

“These are all Biden trials,” according to Trump, and “this is all Biden-run things.” Additionally, he asserted that President Joe Biden had “put” Matthew Colangelo, a former top Justice Department official who currently works for Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, in the district attorney’s office.

He was speaking following the announcement that a Manhattan criminal trial on charges of fabricating business records in connection with a hush money scheme would begin on April 15 by a New York judge. In addition, an appeals court had lowered the bond that he was required to post after being found guilty of civil fraud.

Details Firstly: Trump’s claims are unfounded. First off, there is no proof that Biden was involved in initiating or overseeing any of the criminal or civil cases against Trump; instead, elected officials who do not answer to the president or the federal Justice Department—Bragg is leading the Manhattan prosecution, and Letitia James is leading the civil fraud case in New York. Secondly, there is no proof that Biden was involved in Colangelo’s choice to leave the federal Justice Department and work as senior counsel to Bragg in the district attorney’s office in 2022. Colangelo and Bragg knew each other before Bragg was elected Manhattan district attorney.

No proof to back up Trump’s allegations regarding Biden

About two months before Trump announced his campaign for president in 2024, in September of 2022, James filed the case that resulted in Trump’s civil fraud trial. The complaint resulted from an investigation she started in 2019, which was around two years before Biden took over as president from Trump. Furthermore, there is no indication that Biden was involved in the criminal prosecution of Trump in Manhattan or Fulton County, Georgia; instead, elected local district attorneys have been in charge of both cases.

Special Counsel Jack Smith, however, brought the two federal indictments against Trump. Smith was appointed in November 2022 by Attorney General Merrick Garland, who was appointed by Biden. However, Garland has stated that he would resign if Biden ever asked him to take action against Trump, but he was confident that would never happen. This does not prove that Biden was involved in the prosecution effort, much less that he personally ordered the indictments as Trump has previously claimed.

It is noteworthy to mention that in all four of Trump’s criminal prosecutions, the indictments were accepted by grand juries composed of regular citizens in New York, Georgia, Florida, and Washington, DC.

Colangelo’s action

Additionally, Trump has offered no proof to support his allegation that Biden planned Colangelo’s 2022 transfer from the Justice Department to the Manhattan district attorney’s office. Previously, Colangelo and Bragg shared an office as the attorney general of New York, when Colangelo looked into Trump’s financial and charitable activities and was involved in filing several lawsuits against the Trump administration.

During the early months of the Biden administration in 2021, Colangelo held the position of interim associate attorney general. Subsequently, she was appointed principal deputy associate attorney general. As acting associate attorney general, he was never the department’s top officer, despite what Trump has said in the past. Instead, he was third in command.