Dem
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GOP
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Donald Trump was expected to be a witness in the civil trial New York AG Letitia James brought against him. He was going to testify today. Yesterday, he changed his mind and won't testify on his behalf at all. He doesn't have to, since it's his defense, and his side gets to decide what witnesses to put up. This is good news for him since James' lawyers would have torn him limb from limb on the stand and undoubtedly gotten him to commit perjury multiple times. He is a terrible witness and should never have even considered testifying in his own defense.
On his failing boutique social network, Trump wrote: "As everyone knows, I have very successfully & conclusively testified in the corrupt, Biden directed, New York state attorney general's rigged trial against me." Virtually every word of that is false, except maybe "I" and "me." One of Trump's lawyers, Chris Kise, who is reasonably competent, said: "President Trump has already testified. There is really nothing more to say to a Judge who has imposed an unconstitutional gag order and thus far appears to have ignored President Trump's testimony and that of everyone else involved in the complex financial transactions at issue in the case." This is an odd thing for Kise, an experienced lawyer, to say. Trump insults the judge all the time because he is hoping this will goad the judge into making some mistake that the appeals court can latch onto to throw the trial out. Kise knows playing that game is the longest of long shots and something no halfway decent lawyer would try. It's possible that Trump made him say this, against his professional judgment. Certainly, Kise knows very well that you don't insult the judge in a bench trial, like this one.
Last week, Eli Bartov, a professor of accounting at NYU, testified that he saw no evidence of fraud in Trump's transactions. He also admitted that the Trump Organization and Trump's super PAC have paid him $875,000 for his testimony. When asked if that money affected his testimony, he said: "No." Good to know that. Judge Arthur Engoron will sure be pleased to know he gave honest testimony, independent of getting almost $1 million from Trump so far. That amount might just have been the first half, with the rest due after his appearance.
James is expected to put two more witnesses on the stand. Then both sides will write up their arguments for the judge. On Jan. 11, both sides will return for closing oral arguments. Engoron said he will rule within a few weeks after that. And don't forget that Trump has already lost on one count. Now we're just waiting to see if he's found liable on the remaining counts, and what penalty Engoron will assess. By then we will be into primary season, and a ruling that Trump has to pay $250 million or more in fines will not make him a happy camper, but it may not move the needle much because this is a civil case. Also up in January is the second defamation lawsuit E. Jean Carroll has thrown at Trump. While one loss in court may not matter much, a series of big losses in the NY AG's case, Carroll's case, and maybe the federal trial scheduled for March 4, could begin to add up. (V)