Former President Donald Trumpā€™s Thursday courtroom tirade could backfire, legal experts warn.

Trump attorney Chris Kise asked Judge Arthur Engoron, who is overseeing Trumpā€™s New York fraud trial, to allow Trump to speak on his own behalf during closing arguments. Engoron asked Trump if he would agree to stick to the facts and relevant law but the former president launched into a lengthy diatribe, accusing the judge and New York Attorney General Letitia James of waging a ā€œpolitical witch huntā€ and demanding ā€œdamagesā€ because the real ā€œfraud is on me.ā€

During one portion of his rant, Trump referred to a key allegation in Jamesā€™ lawsuit alleging that the former presidentā€™s Trump Tower penthouse was valued at three times larger than it actually is.

ā€œThey made a mistake. It was an honest mistake,ā€ Trump said.

Jamesā€™ team allowed Trump to speak until the judge ultimately shut him down and pleaded for Kise to ā€œcontrol your client.ā€

ā€œThere may be a reason that Jamesā€™ staff didnā€™t interrupt,ā€ wrote NBC News legal analyst Lisa Rubin. ā€œThe AGā€™s office may have struck gold because some of what Trump said was so damaging to him, especially his explanation of the triplex square footage ā€˜error.ā€™ā€

  • themeatbridge@lemmy.world
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    10 months ago

    If Trump is actually convicted, I wouldnā€™t be surprised if the oligarchy that owns the SCOTUS decides to cut him loose completely. The SCOTUS can just decline to hear any appeals and leave him out with the laundry.

      • FuglyDuck@lemmy.world
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        10 months ago

        weā€™re huffing the good copium.

        I remember pointing out, that Trump was a millstone around the GOP, and they lost their chance to be rid of him with the second impeachment. If they had convicted himā€¦ heā€™d go away and theyā€™d now be running somebody else against Biden. and probably win.

    • TheWoozy@lemmy.world
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      10 months ago

      The problem with the SCOTUS avoiding responsibility on the issue is that it will up to each state to decide whether he should be on the ballet. Only blue states will abide by the constitution and keep him off. It wonā€™t make a difference to the outcome, but it will feed the magats accusations of a rigged election.