OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
Former President Donald Trump has made a decision as to whether he will testify in his own civil trial in a case filed against him and his sons and companies by New York Attorney General Letitia James.
Trump said that he will take the stand during the $250 million civil trial “at the appropriate time,” Newsmax reported.
The former president is on the witness lists for himself and for the prosecution.
“Yes, I will” testify at the trial, Trump told reporters in remarks during the lunch break on day two of the trial Tuesday. “At the appropriate time, I will be,” he added.
“I think it’s going very well,” he continued after being asked to assess the trial thus far.
“There was absolutely no fraud,” Trump said, going on to criticize James as being corrupt. “They all made money. They’re all happy, 100% happy.”
Trump also reiterated his previous statement regarding the fact that his accountants always added a disclaimer of “buyer beware” at the end of his financial statements.
“It says, ‘Please, you must understand that you have to do your own due diligence and you have to, above all, do your own research and analysis: Do not rely on anything; do not rely on the financial statements,'” Trump added. “Also, the financial statements are very strong in terms of cash liquidity and everything else.
“This case is a scam. There can’t be fraud when you’ve told institutions to do their own work. This case is a fraud and scam.”
Newsmax added:
In the courtroom, Judge Arthur Engoron set the record straight about a comment that the ex-president had touted as an important victory.
Engoron had suggested Monday that testimony about Trump’s 2011 financial statement might be beyond the legal time limit applicable to James’ lawsuit. It alleges that Trump and his business chronically lied about his wealth on financial statements given to banks, insurers and others.
The relevant statute of limitations rules out claims related to activities before a date in 2014, and Trump’s legal team has argued that the time limit cuts off most of the case.
Engoron said Tuesday that “statutes of limitations bar claims, not evidence” and at the trial’s early stage, he’s inclined to give both sides considerable leeway to connect older evidence to claims in the lawsuit.
“I want to emphasize: This trial is not an opportunity to relitigate what I have already decided,” Engoron said.
Last week, he ruled that all claims were allowable under New York’s statute of limitations.
The trial is expected to last into December, the report said.
Trump has also accused James and others who have filed charges against him of engaging in “election interference” as he has soared to the top of the polls for the GOP presidential nomination and, in a growing number of surveys, even surpassing President Joe Biden.
“Trump took the support of 50% of respondents in the latest InsiderAdvantage survey. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis placed second with 15% while former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley narrowly trailed him with 14%. Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie placed fourth with 5% while tech mogul Vivek Ramaswamy earned 3% support,” Just The News reported on Monday.
IA Chairman Matt Towery said: “DeSantis and Haley are the only remaining viable candidates of the current field of candidates. In my opinion the debates are having a diminishing impact on the race. Absent some major unexpected shakeup, it appears Donald Trump is the prohibitive favorite to win the GOP nomination.”
Meanwhile, former Vice President Mike Pence, former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchison, and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum all received 1 percent support.
Just The News noted that the results of the survey showed Trump surged 5 percent over the previous poll, while DeSantis dropped 3 percent and Haley gained as much. In August, Ramaswamy’s support was at 7 percent but it fell by half during the latest survey.
