CNN
—
Former President Donald Trump is returning Monday to testify at his New York civil fraud trial, this time beneath questioning from his personal attorneys in an effort to bolster his protection in opposition to allegations he fraudulently inflated the worth of his properties.
Trump has already testified once in the trial, repeatedly barreling previous questions from the New York legal professional normal’s workplace to as an alternative assault the decide overseeing his case and the legal professional normal’s $250 million lawsuit in opposition to him
The questions are more likely to be friendlier Monday to the previous president from his personal attorneys – at the very least till he faces cross-examination from the legal professional normal’s workplace – however that doesn’t imply the bitter tensions effervescent all through the 10-week trial case will soften away.
Trump’s testimony comes as he has relentlessly attacked the civil fraud case introduced by New York Lawyer Common Letitia James, who’s in search of $250 million in damages and to bar the previous president from doing enterprise within the state.
Trump has additionally attacked the decide within the case, Arthur Engoron, and Engoron’s principal legislation clerk resulting in a gag order barring speak concerning the clerk. The previous president’s attorneys are interesting the order.
Whereas Trump just isn’t going through prison costs on this case, the allegations in opposition to his enterprise are private for the previous president, and he’s spent a number of days attending the trial exterior of his testimony.
The civil trial is a preview of what may play out subsequent yr as Trump runs for president on the identical time a number of of his 4 prison trials are ongoing.
Right here’s what to look at in Monday’s testimony:
Trial and marketing campaign path converge
Trump attended the civil trial Thursday to listen to the testimony of New York College accounting professor Eli Bartov, an skilled witness for his protection.
Trump didn’t must be there – Bartov is considered one of a number of skilled witnesses his attorneys have referred to as throughout their protection – however his presence elevated the eye on the trial testimony and gave the previous president the prospect to talk to tv cameras simply exterior the courtroom at each break.
“We’ve confirmed that is only a witch hunt,” Trump mentioned at one level. “It can’t be extra conclusive.”
Trump additionally complained that he was in New York as an alternative of one of many early swing states for his 2024 marketing campaign, regardless that he was attending voluntarily.
“I needs to be proper now in Iowa, in New Hampshire, in South Carolina. I shouldn’t be sitting in a courthouse,” Trump mentioned.
Trump’s feedback confirmed how he took the chance to assault the trial for interfering along with his presidential bid, however the actuality is that the 2 have successfully converged – Trump’s trials have turn out to be a part of his pitch to his base, arguing that his personal authorized peril is a key cause voters ought to return him to the White Home.
James alleges that Trump and his co-defendants – together with his two grownup sons, the Trump Group and several other firm executives – dedicated fraud in inflating property on monetary statements to get higher phrases on business actual property loans and insurance coverage insurance policies.
Engoron already ruled earlier than the trial started final month that Trump and his co-defendants had been liable for “persistent and repeated” fraud. Now the decide is contemplating how a lot the Trumps should pay in damages for the income they’ve allegedly garnered by fraudulent enterprise practices.
An skilled witness for the legal professional normal testified final month that the ill-gotten positive factors totaled $168 million, although a protection witness disputed that evaluation.
The legal professional normal’s workplace can be seeking to show six different claims: falsifying enterprise information, conspiracy to falsify enterprise information, issuing false monetary statements, conspiracy to falsify monetary statements, insurance coverage fraud and conspiracy to commit insurance coverage fraud.
The trial has performed out over the previous two months with an enchantment looming, as Trump’s attorneys have already appealed Engoron’s preliminary choice. Engoron’s ruling in the remainder of the case – which is a bench trial, that means there isn’t a jury – can be certain to be appealed if it goes in opposition to Trump.
Whereas there aren’t any prison costs within the case, its consequence has critical implications for the previous president, because the legal professional normal is in search of to bar Trump from conducting enterprise in New York.
Engoron’s abstract judgment ruling canceled Trump’s enterprise certificates, although that has been positioned on maintain whereas it’s appealed.
A New York appeals court docket final week agreed to cease the cancellation of Trump’s enterprise certificates till after the civil fraud trial and any appeals are accomplished – a continuation of an earlier ruling by a single appeals court docket decide at first of the trial.
Trump more likely to defend his properties and model
Trump’s attorneys have argued the previous president’s statements of monetary situation weren’t fraudulent, and that Deutsche Financial institution, which loaned Trump cash for a number of properties, carried out its personal evaluation and didn’t depend on the statements anyway.
The protection attorneys have referred to as skilled witnesses to testify there was not fraud and that Deutsche Financial institution wouldn’t have acted in another way had Trump’s internet price been decrease than what he reported on the time of the transactions.
They’ve additionally argued that valuations are subjective, that variations in valuations are widespread and that Trump’s internet price is increased than what was listed in his statements as a result of it didn’t take note of the worth of his model.
Trump is more likely to amplify arguments about his model and internet price on Monday, primarily based on his prior testimony. When he wasn’t attacking the trial, Trump was boasting about his properties and golf programs.
He claimed Mar-a-Lago was price greater than $1 billion, and that his golf course in Aberdeen, Scotland, was “the best golf course ever constructed.”
When Trump’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., testified, the protection attorneys walked by a glossy PR presentation touting the Trump Group, in what may very well be an indication of how they plan to strategy the previous president’s testimony, too.
Tensions between Trump and the decide
Trump’s earlier testimony – by which he attacked the legal professional normal, the decide and all the trial with bombastic rhetoric – repeatedly exasperated Engoron, who at one level threatened to have Trump eliminated as a witness.
“This can be a political witch hunt and I feel she needs to be ashamed of herself,” Trump mentioned of James at one level in his testimony.
“It’s a horrible factor you’ve achieved,” he mentioned at one other level to the decide.
The questions Trump shall be requested by his personal attorneys Monday are more likely to give attention to the Trump Group, not the allegations from the legal professional normal. However that doesn’t imply Trump received’t take the prospect on the stand to degree the identical assaults he’s been making in feedback exterior court docket or on his social media.
Trump can be working beneath a gag order, which Engoron put in place after the previous president attacked his legislation clerk, Allison Greenfield, on social media, posting an image of her with Senate Majority Chief Chuck Schumer, a Democrat.
Engoron has fined Trump twice for violating the order, together with $10,000 for feedback he made exterior of court docket throughout former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen’s testimony. That resulted in a unprecedented scene by which the decide referred to as Trump to the stand to reply questions on whether or not he was referring to Greenfield or Cohen when he complained concerning the “one who may be very partisan sitting alongside” the decide.
Enrogon mentioned Trump’s claims that he was referring to Cohen had been “not credible” as he levied his fantastic. Trump’s attorneys have appealed.
Trump legal professional Alina Habba mentioned Trump was testifying regardless of her recommendation to not as a result of the gag order is in place.
“He nonetheless desires to take the stand regardless that my recommendation is at this level you must by no means take the stand with a gag order. However he’s so firmly in opposition to what is going on on this court docket,” Habba mentioned Thursday.