Mark Cuban comes to Trump’s defense following criticism from Democratic lawmaker

Billionaire Mark Cuban, who has expressed his intention to vote for President Joe Biden in the upcoming general election, came to the defense of Donald Trump on Tuesday in response to a Democrat lawmaker’s accusation that the former president lied about his net worth.

Rep. Ted Lieu, D-Calif., criticized Trump on social media on Monday for failing to secure a bond that would enable him to appeal a $464 million judgment in a civil fraud case.

“Trump claims he is a billionaire. But he can’t pay a $464 million judgment. That means he is lying. How do I know? Math,” Lieu wrote in a tweet with the hashtag “TrumpIsBroke.”

Cuban chimed in on Lieu’s statement the following day.

“Ted, you know I’m no supporter of Trump. That’s for sure,” Cuban, 65, tweeted. “How anyone can vote for someone who has so many of his executive employees turn on him and say he is incompetent is beyond me. But you are wrong on this topic Ted.”

Cuban clarified that a person’s net worth is distinct from the cash they have readily available.

“We were in a zero interest rate environment for a long time,” Cuban explained. “So keeping cash in the bank or money markets was not wise. In fact, searching for yield is what caused problems for small banks last year.

“Also unwise was keeping interest rates low for an extended period. This was something Trump advocated for.”

Cuban suggested that Trump may have brought his current troubles upon himself by focusing on non-cash investments to grow his net worth and by allegedly providing false information to banks about his assets.

“There is only one reason to lie on a loan application — you have to,” he stated.

Cuban went on to discuss the broader financial landscape, mentioning that few people maintain more than 45 percent of their assets in liquid form, and noting the difficulties Trump may face in obtaining bonds due to his holdings in commercial real estate and foreign assets.

Earlier this month, Cuban announced his plans to vote for Biden in the upcoming election.

“If it came down to Trump versus Biden, even at his last moment, I would choose Joe Biden,” Cuban told Bloomberg News.