Former President Donald Trump will be in the spotlight in New York Monday as he takes the witness stand to testify in his own defense.
Trump is defending himself in a civil trial against charges of making fraudulent statements to take out loans and insurance for his business, the Washington Times reported.
The state’s Democratic attorney general, Letitia James, is “predicting fireworks” for the session, according to the report.
“Next week, Donald Trump himself will take the stand,” she said in a video posted to social media.
She added: “And while I am sure he will try to hide his wrongdoing behind taunts, threats and name-calling, we will not be bullied out of uncovering the truth.”
Today, we heard testimony from Donald Trump’s sons and co-defendants, Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump.
They pretend that they were not involved in their family’s fraudulent business.
But the facts tell a very different story. ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/m5X0B8saa0
— NY AG James (@NewYorkStateAG) November 2, 2023
Liberal media outlets have devoted extensive reporting resources to covering the event and speculating on its implications, using the charges to paint Trump in a negative light.
“Donald Trump is set to testify in a Manhattan courtroom on Monday in the $250 million civil fraud case that threatens to unravel the sweeping real estate empire and business bona fides the former president relied upon in his unlikely ascent to the White House,” U.S. News and World Report said.
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The outlet opined that “Beyond having a former president testify under oath, Trump taking the stand in his civil trial creates an unusual situation – one in which his bombastic nature and tendency to misrepresent will be constrained.”
Many conservatives, meanwhile, have said that the charges are politically motivated, designed to block Trump’s plans to regain the White House in 2024’s presidential elections.
Trump himself has said that he and his children are being “persecuted in a political witch hunt,” Fox News reported Thursday.
On Friday’s “Wake Up America,” Jordan Sekulow says the Trump civil fraud trial in New York is only happening to keep Donald Trump out of the White House and to get Letitia James elected governor.@JordanSekulow @RobFinnertyUSA @SharlaMcBride pic.twitter.com/tiLh7YE7BS
— NEWSMAX (@NEWSMAX) November 3, 2023
Trump’s son Eric spoke with the media Friday after testifying, decrying what he said was an unfair attack on his father’s business empire.
“What New York state is trying to do to my father is truly awful,” he said, according to Fox News.
“I’ve never seen anything like it,” Trump said. “We have an unbelievable company. We have some of the best assets anywhere in the world. We’ve never had a default, we’ve never missed a loan payment.”
He went on to say that the Trump Organization employs thousands of people and manages “the most significant buildings, some of the best golf courses, so many other great properties.”
The former president is the only one scheduled to testify in the proceedings that day, ABC News reported.
“We will reconvene on Monday at 10 a.m., and the first witness will be …?” Engoron asked Friday, according to the report.
“The only witness will be Donald J. Trump,” state attorney Andrew Amer replied.
