Former President Donald Trump said Thursday that his “legal issues” have been “set up” by President Biden and the Democrats, declaring that it is “their new form of cheating” in the election.
Trump held a press conference at his Manhattan property at 40 Wall St. on Thursday after closing arguments were delivered in the non-jury civil trial stemming from New York Attorney General Letitia James’ lawsuit against him.
James sued Trump, his family and his business empire, claiming he inflated his financial statements and deceived banks. Trump has denied any wrongdoing. The former president has repeatedly said his assets were actually undervalued. Trump has repeatedly said his financial statements had disclaimers, requesting that the numbers be evaluated by the banks.
Democrat New York Attorney General Letitia James and former President Donald Trump. (Getty Images)
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Trump has been in court twice this week — once in a federal Appeals Court in Washington D.C., as he argues presidential immunity from charges in Special Counsel Jack Smith’s Jan. 6 case; and again Thursday for James’ case in New York.
The court appearances came just days ahead of the first-in-the-nation primary contests in Iowa — the Jan. 15 Iowa Caucuses.
“My legal issues, every one of them, every one — civil and criminal ones — are all set up by Joe Biden. Crooked Joe Biden,” he said. “This is something that’s never happened in this country, even when you look at this, this is all about Biden.”
“This should never have happened,” Trump said of the New York trial. “But again, this is sponsored by the Democrats.”
Trump pointed to charges against him in Special Counsel Jack Smith’s classified records case, to which he pleaded not guilty. Biden is currently under special counsel investigation for the same thing, allegedly improperly retaining classified records.
“I just hear where they want to try and exonerate Biden, and he didn’t have the Presidential Records Act. And I do. I did nothing wrong,” Trump said. “You can’t have two tiers of justice in this country.”
Trump pointed to reports that James met with Biden in 2022 and 2023 at the White House.
“They’re doing it for election interference, and, in a way, I guess you’d consider it part of the campaign, because if you really look at it, they are doing this, and it’s never been done like this in this country. It’s like we are a Third World country — a banana republic,” Trump said.
But Trump continued on, touting his poll numbers, in which he leads Biden in a head-to-head match-up.
President Joe Biden speaks in Bethesda, Maryland, on Thursday, Dec. 14 2023. (Chris Kleponis/CNP/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
He added that regardless of the presidential primary calendar and his campaign schedule, “I want to go to all of my trials.”
“These are all set up by Biden and the Democrats,” Trump said. “This is their new form of cheating. This is like last time. This is their new form of cheating.”
He added: “So far, I think it’s gone very much against them.”
Smith’s Jan. 6 trial was set to begin on March 4, the day before the March 5 Super Tuesday primary contests, when Alabama, Alaska, American Samoa, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia and Vermont vote to select a GOP nominee.
Donald Trump and Jack Smith
That has been put on pause due to a review by the Appeals Court and possibly the Supreme Court on Trump’s argument of presidential immunity.
Next on the calendar was the trial stemming from Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s yearslong investigation related to hush-money payments made during the 2016 presidential campaign. Trump pleaded not guilty to all charges.
That trial is set to begin in New York City on March 25, 2024. However, Bragg said he would be flexible on that date, pending the decision on trial timing in Smith’s Jan. 6 case.
If it does begin on March 25, court proceedings will take place just after the Louisiana primary and ahead of April 2 — when Connecticut, Delaware, New York, Rhode Island and Wisconsin voters hit the polls to select a GOP nominee.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg. (Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Then, Smith’s classified documents trial is set to begin on May 20, 2024, ahead of the Kentucky primary on May 21, the Oregon primary on May 25 and New Jersey’s primary on June 4.
Should Trump solidify his lead in the GOP nomination, he would spend July 15-18 at the Republican Convention in Milwaukee.
However, just weeks later, Fulton County, Georgia, District Attorney Fani Willis has proposed her trial begin.
FILE – Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis. (AP Photo/John Bazemore, File)
Trump has pleaded not guilty to all charges in all cases.
Trump’s comments Thursday come after he defied New York Judge Arthur Engoron and delivered his own closing argument in court.
Former President Trump speaks to members of the media as he arrives at the New York State Supreme Court during the civil fraud trial against the Trump Organization, in New York City on Jan. 11, 2024. (Photo by TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP via Getty Images)
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Trump said his financial statements were “perfect,” and stressed that the bank loans were repaid and are “as happy as can be.”
Trump acknowledged that there was an “error” made regarding one “triplex,” but said that mistake was “immediately corrected” and was an “honest mistake.”
“When you say don’t go outside of these things, I’m an innocent man, persecuted,” Trump said to Engoron while blasting the case as “election interference” and saying if he is “not allowed to talk about it, it’s a disservice.”
Engoron told Trump to wrap up his remarks within one minute, but Trump fired back, saying, “You can’t listen for more than one minute?”
“Mr. Kise, please control your client,” Engoron said to Trump’s attorney.
Former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks as he leaves the courtroom during his civil fraud trial at New York Supreme Court on January 11, 2024, in New York City. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)
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However, the former president went on to say, “I did nothing wrong, they should pay me for what I’ve been put through.”
Trump defended his business empire and said he was sued to get publicity.
Justice Arthur Engoron presides over the civil fraud trial of the Trump Organization at the New York State Supreme Court in New York City on November 13, 2023. (ERIN SCHAFF/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
Trump left court shortly after he spoke, and hosted a press conference at his 40 Wall St. property in Manhattan.
“She’s a political hack. The attorney general, the judge is obviously extremely friendly with the group,” Trump said. “And we’ll see what happens.”
Trump said there is a chance “they surprise people on a positive side, we’ll have to see what happens exactly.”
“But we’ve proven this case so conclusively and we’ve asked for directed verdict many times,” Trump said. “They don’t have any facts. They don’t have any evidence against us.”
Fox News’ Maria Paronich contributed to this report.
