A U.S. congressman labeled former President Donald Trump a "massive national security risk" on Monday over his seeming inability to come up with the $454 million bond he's been ordered to pay in a New York civil fraud case.

Trump's lawyers reportedly told a New York appeals court that he's thus far been unable to find an underwriter willing to put up the nine-figure sum - plus an additional $10 million to cover interest. He's been given until the end of the month to come up with the cash.

The financial fix makes Trump, this year's presumptive Republican presidential nominee, a liability, Rep. Sean Casten (D-IL) claimed Monday.

"The presumptive @GOP nominee for President is desperate for $464M (and counting) which he cannot personally access," Casten wrote in a post on X. "That fact alone makes him a massive national security risk; any foreign adversary seeking to buy a President knows the price."

The presumptive @GOP nominee for President is desperate for $464M (and counting) which he cannot personally access. That fact alone makes him a massive national security risk; any foreign adversary seeking to buy a President knows the price. https://t.co/9bPylekmoB

— Sean Casten (@SeanCasten) March 18, 2024

 

New York Attorney General Letitia James said last month that she would move to seize some of Trump's New York properties if he didn't come up with the sum.

But one insurance broker, Gary Giuletti, reportedly signed an affidavit presented to the appeals court stating that securing a bond in the full amount "is a practical impossibility."