Quote:Real estate investor Grant Cardone posted on X that his company, CardoneCapital, had initiated research into potential investments in New York. However, former President Trump was ordered to pay $355 million following a civil fraud ruling.

Cardone said his team will double their efforts to find real estate properties in several red states, including Florida, Texas, and Tennessee.

As RedState reported, Elena Cardone, Grant's wife, set up a GoFundMe page to help Trump pay the $355 million. So far, they have raised over half a million dollars.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul tried to reassure folks that they would not be fined for doing business in New York.

I think that this is really an extraordinary, unusual circumstance that the law-abiding and rule-following New Yorkers who are business people have nothing to worry about, because they’re very different than Donald Trump and his behavior.

By and large, they are honest people and they’re not trying to hide their assets and they’re following the rules.

And so this judge determined that Donald Trump did not follow the rules. He was prosecuted and truly, the governor of the state of New York does not have a say in the size of a fine, and we want to make sure that we don’t have that level of interference.

Well, it does not seem like her message is resonating with real estate investors and other entrepreneurs. Cardone is well-known in the real estate industry and seems to have many connections, which could hurt New York more than some might think.

Cardone is not the only entrepreneur deciding not to do any business in New York. As RedState reported, Shark Tank's Kevin O'Leary, also known as "Mr. Wonderful" said he would never invest in New York now. O'Leary also noted that "every real estate developer does this" regarding the court ruling of Trump, as well as refuting Hochul's claim that those who do business in New York are "very different than Donald Trump."

O'Leary called California a "loser state," and New York a "mega-loser state." Instead, he will invest in red states such as North Dakota, Oklahoma, and West Virginia.

Leadership matters as red states are gaining more investors and entrepreneurs while blue states are seeing a population and business exodus.