Trump's mountain of debt makes him a prime target for foreign autocrats to exploit, ex-national security advisor says

John Bolton (left) and Donald Trump (right). Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images; Joe Raedle via Getty Images

• John Bolton says foreign autocrats may try to take advantage of Donald Trump’s growing debts.
• “They may be doing it already,” Bolton told MSNBC’s Jen Psaki.
• The former president was hit with a $355 million penalty in a New York civil fraud case last week. 

John Bolton says former President Donald Trump’s mounting debts could make him vulnerable to foreign manipulation.

“He is consumed by these troubles, his family is consumed by them, and I think foreigners will try to take advantage of it one way or another,” Bolton told MSNBC’s Jen Psaki in an interview that aired Sunday.

“They may be doing it already,” Bolton continued.

The former national security advisor referenced an interview Russian leader Vladimir Putin gave last week, where he said that he’d prefer a second Biden administration over a Trump one.

“President Putin of Russia has just given me a great compliment, actually,” Trump said in response to Putin’s remarks.

“He doesn’t want to have me. He wants Biden because he’s going to be given everything he wants, including Ukraine,” he told rallygoers in South Carolina.

Bolton said he thought Trump getting elected would lead to “celebrations in the Kremlin.”

“There’s no doubt about it because Putin thinks he’s an easy mark,” Bolton told Psaki.

The former president is facing a growing pile of legal debts. Last week, Trump was hit with a $355 million penalty in a New York civil fraud case. He also owes $83.3 million in defamation damages to E. Jean Carroll, a writer he was found guilty of sexually assaulting in 1996.

Trump’s growing financial woes have fuelled speculation that he might have to sell his assets and properties to raise money.

On Saturday, Trump made a surprise appearance at “Sneaker Con” in Philadelphia, where he hawked a new line of $399 gold high-top sneakers.

Representatives for Trump did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider sent outside regular business hours.