Dem
51
GOP
49
It is well known why Donald Trump picked Alina Habba as one of his lawyers: She's pretty (see above). She even once said: "And just because I'm pretty doesn't mean I'm not a brilliant lawyer." Her failure to ask for a jury trial in the NY civil case brought by AG Letitia James suggests that maybe she is not so brilliant, though. Trump probably doesn't know that her parents were refugees from a sh*thole country (Iraq) who came to the U.S. in the early 1980s. She was born in New Jersey in 1984. Also significant is that Trump is lazy and her firm's office is only 3 miles from Trump's Bedminster, NJ, golf club. He could get there in a golf cart in 15 minutes.
But one of the great mysteries of the universe is why she would want to work for him (and possibly fend off his advances). Yahoo! has a story up that might explain it. If the story is true, Habba and her husband, Gregg Reuben, have more than $1 million in outstanding liens and warrants. They desperately need a lot of money. The combination of possibly getting paid by Trump (or getting some money in advance) and the massive publicity resulting from her defending Trump and frequently talking to the media probably was irresistible.
Habba has two small active liens against her firm from the Maine Dept. of Labor. However, Reuben and his LLCs have many outstanding liens and tax warrants. From Albany County, NY, alone he owes payments of $94,000 and $179,000 dating back to 2016, one of $484,000 from 2020, and one of $59,000 from 2022. All in all, he is personally liable for more than $770,000 in tax liens from his LLCs, as well as other debts. Reuben is in the parking management business and owns several parking companies. (V)