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Donald Trump to testify in New York civil fraud trial [1]

['Daily Kos Staff']

Date: 2023-11-06  

Donald Trump is set to testify Monday in the civil fraud trial that could determine the future of his New York businesses. Trump’s adult sons Don Jr. and Eric testified last week, and daughter Ivanka is scheduled to testify later this week after an appeals court rejected her argument that testifying during the school week was an undue burden. But there’s no doubt that Donald Sr. is the big one, and his testimony here could be a preview of testimony—should his lawyers decide to have him testify—in his four upcoming criminal trials.

Aside from the substance of the legal action Trump faces, which centers on whether he fraudulently manipulated the value of his assets, there’s the question of how he conducts himself on the stand. Trump is not known for sticking closely to the truth, which means he could risk perjury here. Trump has also repeatedly violated a limited gag order barring him from attacking members of the court staff. Last week, Judge Arthur Engoron extended that order to Trump’s lawyers. Trump comes to testify on a field littered with landmines he himself tossed out there, and he doesn’t appear to be headed to court in the best frame of mind, based on his Monday morning Truth Social post railing against the “really Biased, Nasty, Club controlled, but often overturned, Judge”:

New York Attorney General Letitia James (the “Racist, Evil, and Corrupt Attorney General,” or, in translation, a Black woman who is holding Trump to account) is seeking $250 million in damages for what she alleges is a pattern of fraud in which Trump inflated the value of his assets to get favorable terms on loans and insurance policies. Engoron ruled before the trial even began that Trump, his adult sons, and the Trump Organization were liable for “persistent and repeated” fraud. The Trumps could also be barred from running businesses in New York, where much of their business has historically been located.

There’s a lot at stake for Trump in this case and this testimony, and it will be extremely interesting to find out if he can keep a lid on his temper and function well enough to get through the day without a damaging blow-up.

Unfortunately the trial is not televised, but Daily Kos will follow it live based on reports from inside the courtroom.

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[1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/11/6/2203890/-Donald-Trump-to-testify-in-New-York-civil-fraud-trial?pm_campaign=front_page&pm_source=top_news_slot_9&pm_medium=web

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