Letitia James slaps back after 'panicked' Trump demands stay to his $464M fraud ruling

New York Attorney General Letitia James on Wednesday told the state's appeals court to ignore former President Donald Trump's claims that he can't cough up the $464 million damages he was hit with in his civil fraud trial, court records show.

James' taut slap-back comes as "panic" mounts among the Trump team just five days before the massive payment is due, sources close to the former president told CNN.

"The New York Attorney General's office is telling the appeals court that it's too late for Trump to come to the table with this information," CNN reporter Kara Scannell told Wolf Blitzer Wednesday. "They are ready to move forward to try to seize some of his assets and possibly properties as soon as Monday."

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James' new filing arrived two days after Trump notified the court he was unable to secure a bond from any of the 30 insurers he approached to cover the fraud penalty as he pursues an appeal to Justice Arthur Engoron's ruling earlier this year. The amount is due Monday.

The attorney general's office argues Trump's demand should be ignored in entirety or the witness testimony attached — from an insurance broker and the former president's legal officer — should be discarded since both have a vested interest in the outcome.

James also demands more information about Trump's pursuit of a bond, suggesting that he may have simply been unwilling to accept terms offered by the insurers.

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"They're trying to get under the hood to understand if Trump just doesn't want to take the terms that are being offered," Scannell explained, "or if they really can't get a deal."

Also embedded in the legalese is a small dig at Trump's financial standing, court records show.

"Sureties may have refused to accept defendants’ specific holdings as collateral because using Mr. Trump’s real estate will generally need 'a property appraisal,'" writes prosecutor Dennis Fan, "and his holdings are not nearly as valuable as defendants claim."

CNN reporter Kristen Holmes discussed the new filing with Blitzer and the effect the looming deadline was having on Trump, whose money woes include mounting a presidential campaign and an $83.3 million payment ordered in E. Jean Carroll's second defamation lawsuit against him.

When Holmes asked the former president's allies about what the Trump campaign team was working on other than trying to find the bond, she received a startling reply: "Nothing."

"Everybody is really fixated, really upset, about how to do this bond," Holmes said. "This is something that they are very panicked about."

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