#TrumpTrial #day2 thread;
#Trump continued his attacks against #James hours before he returned to court for the 2nd day of arguments in the #civil #fraud #trial that the #NewYork AG brought against him & his company.
In 2 posts on his social platform this morning, Trump used derogatory terms to #attack James while denying any wrongdoing against allegations that he #inflated his #assets.
“People are starting to see what a great company I built through the trial started by the Racist Attorney General of New York State, Letitia ‘Peekaboo’ James. It was all supposed to be private, but in many ways it is exposing great success. Incredible assets, lots of cash, & it only gets better,” #Trump posted 1:37AM
He posted another #rant at 7:32AM calling #James a "deranged lunatic" & a "monster" & attacking #Engoron's ruling last week, which found that Trump had committed #fraud for years.
#Trump & #James arrived at the #NewYork courthouse ~9:30AM ET.
#Trump #legal team disputed claim that it never requested a #jury #trial.
#James’ office told #NBCNews that Trump’s attys never asked for a jury trial, & even if they had, it is likely they would not have received one.
“Many false arguments are circulating regarding *President* Trump’s Trial in New York & the possibility of a jury trial,” Trump spox & #attorney #AlinaHabba said in a statement.
A #Trump spox also disputed claims by James’ office in a statement: “The Attorney General filed this case under a consumer protection statute that denies the right to a jury. There was never an option to choose a jury trial. It is unfortunate that a jury won’t be able to hear how absurd the merits of this case are & conclude no wrongdoing ever happened.”
Acc/to MSNBC #legal analyst Lisa Rubin, the #remedies sought by the AG are primarily of a kind that can be awarded ONLY by a #judge.
Shortly after arriving at the courthouse, #Trump went on a #rant attacking #James as he denied wrongdoing in the case.
“This case should be dismissed,” he said. “This is not a case & she should probably be dismissed also because she’s terrible & grossly incompetent.”
“Her numbers are fraudulent, she’s a fraud,” he added. “The numbers are fraudulent, & this case should be dismissed & to get on to violent crime & solving the problems of New York City & New York state.”
The 2nd day of #Trump's #fraud #trial started ~10:30AM ET.
#Engoron knocked down Trump’s claim yesterday that he’d reversed his earlier ruling & tossed 80% of the AG's case. The #judge explained that’s not what he did, but that he knows Trump’s side disagrees vigorously & is appealing.
Fmr #TrumpOrganization #accountant #DonaldBender back on the #witness stand.
Continuing his #testimony, fmr #Trump #accountant #DonaldBender #testified that the info he used to compile Trump's #FinancialStatements came from the #TrumpOrganization, NOT him.
The #judge already found the #financial statements were grossly #inflated & #fraudulent.
The AG's office is trying to show a #pattern of behavior through documents bolstering #Bender's claim, indicating he & the accounting company he worked for relied on docs that Trump & his company provided them.
That included entering into #evidence a letter that #AllenWeisselberg, then the #TrumpOrganization's CFO, sent #Bender, which read, "We are #responsible for the preparation & fair presentation of the statement on financial condition in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States."
#Trump also delivered some mixed messages (shocker) on the #FinancialStatements that the #judge already found are #fraudulent, maintaining the statements were "incredibly strong" (didn’t say they weren’t fraudulent; perhaps they’re “strongly fraudulent”) while also saying that there were #disclaimers suggesting #FinancialInstitutions shouldn't rely on them.
"There was absolutely no fraud," he said, calling the AG's case against him "a scam & a fraud."
Fmr #Trump #accountant #DonaldBender testified that at one point he discovered that Trump & his company were #withholding certain docs that should have been given to him as he compiled Trump's #FinancialStatements.
Trump &… #AllenWeisselberg, sent #Bender letters asserting they'd "made available to you all available records & financial data" & had "not knowingly withheld from you any #financial #records or related #data that in our judgment would be relevant to your compilation."
Asked if he learned at some point the #Trump had NOT PROVIDED him w/ ALL related #records, #Bender said, "Yes." He added that they'd #failed to to turn over "paper documents over a number of years."
#DonaldBender has finished his #direct #testimony & the #trial has taken a break for lunch.
#TrumpTrial #day2 #fedilaw #legal #law #civil #conspiracy #fraud
As #Trump’s #Legal Woes Have Escalated, So Have His #Violent Remarks
Recent #incendiary statements by the former president, including that shoplifters should be shot, come at a time when his supporters are already #angry over his #indictments.
#TrumpTrial #fedilaw #legal #law #PoliticalViolence #DomesticViolentExtremists #StateSponsoredTerrorism
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/10/03/us/politics/trump-indictments-shoplifters-violence.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare
#Trump had a lot to say on the 1st day of the #fraud #trial against him & his company. Speaking to reporters at a Manhattan courthouse on Mon, he dismissed the judge as a “rogue” justice & said he did not “think the people of this country are going to stand for it.” And he focused on the ofcl who filed the lawsuit against him, NY’s AG, #LetitiaJames.
“This is a disgrace,” he said, “& you ought to go after this attorney general.”
The remark urging people to “go after” a top elected ofcl in NY, by a fmr president whose invective has become a familiar backdrop of #American life, was part of a #pattern of increasingly sharp language from #Trump.
Days earlier, he told hundreds of #Republican activists in #California that #shoplifters should be #shot. Not long before that, he insinuated that the #military general he personally appointed as chairman of the #JointChiefsOfStaff should be #executed for #treason.
#Trump’s public remarks, whether online, in interviews or at rallies, have always had the potential for incendiary effects. A number of defendants prosecuted over the attack on the Capitol on #Jan6, 2021, said they believed they were acting on Trump’s orders.
Part of what has changed is that his #violent remarks now come at a time when the #indictments have already stoked #anger among his supporters & when attacks against #institutions, #judges & #prosecutors around the country have increased.
Back to the #TrumpTrial #day2
And - of course - again, during the lunch break, #Trump slammed the judge's #LawClerk (another civil servant targeted by TFG)
Trump blasted Judge Arthur #Engoron's #law #clerk on #socialmedia shortly before the lunch break, & then amplified the #attack in brief remarks to reporters afterwards.
(So presumably he posted the first attack while in the courtroom in the presence of his lawyers)
#Trump had posted on his social media platform a different user's IG post showing #Engoron's #LawClerk at an event where she posed w/Sen Maj Ldr Chuck Schumer. The IG post questioned why she was "palling around" w/Schumer.
Trump's post went farther, referring to the #clerk as "Schumer’s girlfriend" & said she "is running this case against me. How disgraceful! This case should be dismissed immediately."
#incitement #propaganda #law #legal #DomesticViolentExtremists
#Trump told reporters outside the courtroom soon after, “You saw what was just put out about Schumer & the principal clerk? That is disgraceful.” (put out by him)
Trump re-entered the courtroom ~1:30PM ET. He is "likely" to watch the trial for the rest of the day, per 2 aides.
It's unclear what led to Trump's decision (#AttentionWhore), but that would mean he'll be able to watch at least some of his attorney's #CrossExamination of #DonaldBender.
In addition to #Trump’s horrid remarks, his campaign bashed judge during the lunch break
#Engoron is a "far-left Democrat" who says he knows "more about the value of the business empire Of (no idea why of is capitalized) *President* Trump than his banks, business partners, accountants, employees, & insurers," the email said.
The email also pointed to excerpts of articles from #FarRight websites that have been critical of the judge.
Court resumed at 3PM, after delays, once it did, #Engoron noted #Trump’s #socialmedia #post about his #LawClerk. The post was also emailed to millions of people.
Engoron said he ordered the post to be taken down & that #PersonalAttacks on his #staff were unacceptable & would not be tolerated. He said that he previously warned the parties about such #attacks yesterday. He finished: “Consider this a #GagOrder on all parties w/respect to posting or publicly speaking about any member of my staff.”
Fact check via CNN:
Before #Trump appeared in court Tues for the 2nd day of his #civil #fraud #trial in #NewYork, he claimed on #socialmedia that it has now “been agreed in Court that Mar-a-Lago is WORTH 50 to 100 times the Value” NY AG #LetitiaJames had ascribed to it, $18 million.
Trump was claiming, therefore, that the court had agreed the Florida property is worth $900 million to $1.8 billion.
Trump’s claim is #false. There has been no such agreement in court.
Judge Arthur #Engoron & a lawyer for #James’ office did not endorse a Trump lawyer’s Mon claim in court that MAL could be sold for >$1 billion.
In #Engoron’s decision last week finding #Trump #liable for #fraud, he wrote that “from 2011-2021, the Palm Beach County Assessor appraised the market value of Mar-a-Lago at between $18 million & $27.6 million.”
#Engoron noted again in court on Mon that there were “significant” limitations on how the #Trump property can be used, & he said he had “specifically said” in the decision last week that “I'm not valuing or evaluating properties.”
He said, “Please, press, stop saying that I valued it at $18 million. That was a tax assessment. Or, something in that range. There would have been issues of fact as to what the value was.”
Back to the #TrumpTrial #day2
During #CrossExamination this afternoon, #Trump #lawyer Jesus #Suarez tried to pin the blame for #inflated #FinancialStatements on Trump's fmr #accountant, #DonaldBender.
Suarez noted in his questioning that #Bender was the only #CPA compiling the documents, & that others involved like #AllenWeisselberg didn't have that level of expertise. (Um, he was the CFO - the Chief Financial Officer 🤦🏼♀️)
#Bender, who said he made $1 million to $2 million a year, said in response to questioning that he was the one responsible for making sure everything was SUBMITTED correctly. But he countered that the company should have provided him w/proper #financial data, incl’g appraisals.
Earlier today, under questioning by the AG's office, Bender said that he'd compiled the financial statements based solely on info he received from #Trump & his company.
Nonilex
Simon Keating