Donald Trump Fumes After 5-Minute Carroll Trial Testimony Reined In

(from Bloomberg) The court issued a warning to Donald Trump, instructing him to refrain from making any comments, interrupting the proceedings, or challenging the earlier ruling. Following that, on Thursday, he gave the exact same message at the federal courthouse located in the Lower Manhattan District.

In a courtroom, the former president made his return to a setting that was familiar to him during his split-screen campaign. This occurred less than forty-eight hours after the Republican primary in New Hampshire was announced to have been won by Trump.

In the civil trial for E. Jean Carroll’s defamation case against him, Trump took the stand in his own defense for a period of less than five minutes. The action was brought about as a result of Trump’s denial of the writer’s accusation that he raped her in a department store dressing room in the 1990s. The jury is tasked with determining the amount of damages that Trump will pay her, if any at all.

US District Judge Lewis Kaplan prohibited Donald Trump from dismissing Carroll’s claim a few weeks before the trial was scheduled to begin. As a result of the fact that Trump had already been found guilty of sexually assaulting Carroll, the judge stated that this would have the effect of misleading the jury. Just a few minutes before Trump was scheduled to testify, Kaplan reminded him of the situation and cautioned his legal team against using his testimony as a platform for campaigning.

Donald Trump Fumes Over 5-Minute Carroll Trial Testimony Restrictions

When Trump was being sworn in, his attorney, Alina Habba, questioned the former president about whether or not he agreed with the responses he had provided in a previous deposition. The jury had seen a tape of the previous deposition earlier in the day. Over the course of that video tape, Trump refuted Carroll’s allegations and referred to her as “crazy.”

In reference to two remarks that Donald Trump delivered from the White House in June 2019, in which he called Carroll a liar, Habba inquired as to whether or not Trump’s denial of Carroll’s charge was “to defend yourself.”

In response, Trump stated, “Yes, I did; that is absolutely correct.” It was his assertion that Carroll had stated “something that I believe to be a false accusation.”
In the Carroll Defamation Trial, Trump is not allowed to deny allegations of abuse. Read more here.

Unexpectedly, the jury was able to hear Donald Trump vehement and furious denials during the Trump deposition that Carroll’s attorneys played. This was precisely the kind of testimony that the court had stated Trump was unable to make while he was on the stand. Before the jury was brought in to hear from Donald Trump , Habba expressed to the judge that she was “frankly glad” that Carroll’s team had presented it as evidence.

In the course of Donald Trump testimony, Habba inquired as to whether or not he had ever requested that someone “hurt Ms. Carroll.”

Donald Trump responded with a “no.” My only intention was to defend not just myself but also my family and, in reality, the president.

After the former president made his remark that he was “trying to defend himself,” the judge interrupted him at the conclusion of his answer and removed the majority of his response from the record. He instructed the jury to disregard everything the former president said after his statement.

Because of the constraints imposed by the judge, Habba was able to complete her questioning just a few minutes after it had taken place. On the other hand, Roberta Kaplan, a lawyer representing Carroll who is not related to the judge, breezed through an equally brief cross-examination that concentrated on getting Trump to confirm for the jury that he opted not to testify in the last trial with Carroll.

Talking Loudly

Despite being brief, the testimony provided a fascinating sight of Donald Trump testifying under oath in front of a jury. In light of the fact that the former president is currently running for reelection to the presidency and is facing the possibility of being tried for four separate crimes, his demeanor in the courtroom has become a topic of significant public interest. In any of these situations, Donald Trump, who is not known for having a filter when he speaks, has the option of taking a stance on the issue.

Even before the beginning of his testimony, Donald Trump was seen to be unhappy. During the time that Habba and the judge were negotiating about what he might say, it became apparent that he was being restrained. The former president complained while speaking over his own attorney, which is a violation of the protocol that is expected in any courtroom. Additionally, it was an indication of how easily his testimony may take a turn for the worse.

Donald Trump responded to the judge’s queries by saying, “I never met this woman,” while the judge was interrogating his attorney. There is a woman that I am not familiar with.

“Please accept my apologies, Mr. Trump,” Judge Kaplan stated. “By talking loudly while your counsel is speaking, you are disrupting these proceedings, which is not permitted,” the judge said.

After that, Donald Trump did not speak more.

Steven Cheung, who is Donald Trump spokesperson, was expelled from the courtroom at one point because his phone went off. This is an example of the rigorous standards that Judge Kaplan enforces in his courtroom atmosphere.

Carroll’s ‘Narcissism’

A further witness was called by Donald Trump side earlier in the day. Carol Martin, a former broadcaster and a longtime friend of Carroll’s, was the witness.

Donald Trump legal team seized on a number of critical text messages Martin had sent to Carroll over the years. In one of them, Martin wrote that her friend’s “narcissism has run amok.” This article was written after Carroll had filed the initial case. In some of the other instances, she referred to Carroll as a “drug addict” and compared her attitude to the case to that of “Santa at the Christmas parade.”

This was evidence that Carroll has used the litigation to seek notoriety and book sales, which is an allegation that Donald Trump has regularly brought up in social media posts. This was evidence that Trump’s team perceived as evidence.

 

During the course of the cross-examination, Martin stated that her communications were exaggerated and that she later expressed regret for them.

As for Carroll, Martin stated, “I do not have any suspicions about her intentions.” In another instance, I am responsible for misusing those words.

Donald Trump testimony was a striking contrast to his time spent on the witness stand in November during the civil fraud trial against him that was being conducted in New York State and costing $370 million. Regarding that particular instance, Donald Trump disregarded Justice Arthur Arthur Engoron’s repeated requests that he refrain from giving “speeches” while he was on the stand. Over the course of his testimony, which lasted for over four hours, Trump provided lengthy and rambling responses in which he criticized both the case and the judge.

During the Carroll testimony that took place on Thursday, President Donald Trump left the courtroom at approximately 2:30 p.m. and shook his head.

Donald Trump uttered the words, “This is not America,” while thrusting out his jaw and narrowing his eyes for emphasis. It’s not the United States! This is not the United States of America.