Donald Trump went scorched earth on Joe Biden, New York Attorney General Letitia James and his rape accuser E. Jean Carroll in a raucous press conference during a break from his fraud trial in Manhattan.
A crowd in the 77-year-old’s Wall Street skyscraper cheered as he took questions on Iowa, the fraud case, the prosecutions against him and ‘crooked’ Biden.
The former president’s appearance came moments after he made a sudden statement in court, told Judge Arthur Engoron he had done ‘nothing wrong’ and that the city should be ‘paying him’ for what he had gone through.
Engoron interrupted his outburst and urged lawyer Christopher Kise to ‘control his client’ before Trump walked out.
The former president’s attorney Alina Habba Trump’s family business had ‘singlehandedly changed the New York skyline’.
Donald Trump went scorched earth on Joe Biden, New York Attorney General Letitia James and his rape accuser E. Jean Carroll in a raucous press conference during a break from his fraud trial in Manhattan
A crowd in the 77-year-old’s Wall Street skyscraper cheered as he took questions on Iowa, the fraud case, the prosecutions against him and ‘crooked’ Biden
Trump then laid out all the problems with the $250 million fraud case, claimed the trial was unprecedented and insisted all the prosecutions against him are a ploy by Biden and the Democrats.
He also said that presidents who don’t have total immunity will be ‘ineffective’ when asked about his lawyers arguing that he could avoid prosecution for assassinating a political rival.
‘My legal issues, every one of them, every one—civil and the criminal ones—are all set up by Joe Biden. Crooked Joe Biden. This is something that has never happened in this country.
‘It’s a shame. It’s a witch-hunt in the truest sense of the word. It’s election interference.’
‘It’s all a conspiracy to get Biden into office,’ he added before then sharing a report that AG James had visited the president in the White House ‘numerous times’.
He then claimed he never met writer E. Jean Carroll, who has accused him of rape and is suing him for defamation.
‘I don’t know who the hell she is,’ he said, claiming again that her case against him was ‘very unfair’.
Trump did confirm that he would be attending the E. Jean Carroll defamation trial that is set to begin next week.
The former president’s attorney Alina Habba Trump’s family business had ‘singlehandedly changed the New York skyline’ with the case that has put his Big Apple business empire on the line
The former president’s appearance came moments after he made a sudden statement in court, told Judge Arthur Engoron he had done ‘nothing wrong’ and that the city should be ‘paying him’ for what he had gone through
Trump had made the remarks after his appearance at New York Supreme Court earlier today.
Hundreds of mostly tourists lined up against barriers to catch a glimpse of the 45th President.
Not long prior to his arrival, one woman could be seen angrily shouting obscenities from an apartment building above the street seemingly at those who had gathered below.
As his motorcade made its way onto the street and pulled up outside the skyscraper, shouts of ‘f*** Joe Biden’ could be heard ringing out from supporters as well as rounds of applause.
Surrounded by security personnel, the president raised his fists towards the crowds that had gathered.
After a brief wave, he was quickly ushered inside. As he left he mouthed ‘thank you’ to an awaiting press pack before being driven away.
Whilst leaving the building, Trump greeted supporters in the lobby of the building after they started chanting his name and ’47’, at him.
The former president raised a fist at awaiting crowds as he returned to his motorcade on Wall Street
As the president left he mouthed ‘thank you’ towards an awaiting press pack outside the skycraper
Shouts of ‘f*** Joe Biden’ could be heard ringing out from supporters as well as rounds of applause
Security personnel, center, holds back the crowd of supporters as former President Donald Trump thanks them after a news conference
Earlier in the afternoon, Trump addressed the controversy over his triplex apartment at Trump Tower in court, which the Attorney General claims was falsely inflated to triple its size.
He said it was an ‘honest mistake’ and was immediately corrected.
Trump also claimed that ‘legal scholars’ found the case ‘disgraceful’ and said the statute that was used against him was ‘vicious’.
‘It doesn’t give me a jury, it takes away all my rights. This is no fraud, this is a fraud on me.’
Trump claimed he had been ‘forced out,’ apparently referring to his move to Florida in 2019, and claimed he had paid $300 million in tax.
In an apparent reference to New York state , he said: ‘They don’t want me anymore, let’s get rid of Trump.
‘I built buildings all over this city. I have a problem, I guess it’s because I ran for office’
Referring to James, he said that she ‘hates Trump and doesn’t want me to get elected’ to the White House again.
When Judge Engoron gave Trump a one minute warning, Trump shot back: ‘[You have] your own agenda, you can’t listen for more than one minute’
Judge Engoron told Trump’s lawyer Christopher Kise: ‘Mr Kise, please control our client’.
Trump is flanked by his lawyers lawyers Christopher Kise and Alina Habba, wearing his trademark blue suit and red tie
Judge Arthur Engoron had previously barred Trump from speaking because he wanted him to stay on topic. But on Thursday, the judge let him speak
Trump claimed the case had been a ‘persecution’. The judge asked Trump: ‘Haven’t you been sued before?’
Trump ignored him and said that he should have won this case ‘many times’ and complained about his requests to have the case dismissed being ‘immediately shut down’.
A somber looking Trump was seen leaving Trump Tower earlier on Thursday morning, keeping his head down and refusing to stop and wave as he normally would.
Outside of the courtroom, he spoke to reporters to label the proceedings a ‘witch hunt,’ ‘disgrace’ and ‘election interference at the highest level.’
The case represents a dire threat to Trump’s real estate business and could see him forced to sell off some of his most prized properties, including Trump Tower.
Before the trial had even begun on October 2, Judge Engoron ruled that Trump committed fraud by overvaluing his net worth by up to $2.2 billion to get better rates on bank loans.
The trial has been to determine what the penalty should be and the New York State Attorney General is seeking a $370 million fine in the civil case.
Trump sits in the courtroom before the start of closing arguments in his civil business fraud on Thursday
Trump Organization defense attorney Chris Kise presents his summation, as former President Donald Trump, left, looks on at New York Supreme Court
New York Attorney General Letitia James leaves the courtroom during a lunch break on Thursday
The trial involves six undecided claims, including allegations of conspiracy, insurance fraud and falsifying business records.
Trump’s company and two of his sons, Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr., are also defendants. Eric Trump was also in court for closing arguments.
During his closing argument, Kise contended Trump did nothing wrong and didn’t mislead anyone about his wealth.
‘Forty-four days of trial – not one witness came into this courtroom, your honor, and said there was fraud,’ Kise said, contending his client ‘should get a medal’ for his business acumen instead of punishment he deemed the ‘corporate death penalty.’
‘This entire case is a manufactured claim to pursue a political agenda,’ Kise said. ‘It has been press releases and posturing but no evidence.’
Donald Trump could lose control of his New York properties – including his Trump Tower
Since the trial began in October, Trump has gone to court nine times to observe, testify and complain to TV cameras about the case.
Kise acknowledged that some holdings may have been listed ‘higher by immaterial’ amounts, but he added’ ‘there´s plenty of assets that were undervalued by substantial sums.’
Engoron said he is deciding the case because neither side asked for a jury and state law doesn’t allow for juries for this type of lawsuit. He said he hopes to have a decision by the end of the month.
Last month, in a ruling denying a defense bid for an early verdict, the judge signaled he’s inclined to find Trump and his co-defendants liable on at least some claims.
‘Valuations, as elucidated ad nauseum in this trial, can be based on different criteria analyzed in different ways,’ Engoron wrote in the Dec. 18 ruling. ‘But a lie is still a lie.’
Trump will be back in court next week for his upcoming defamation trial against Trump after a jury found last year that he sexually abused columnist E. Jean Carroll.
Trump will be back in court next week for his upcoming defamation trial against Trump after a jury found last year that he sexually abused columnist E. Jean Carroll, seen here on Jan 6
Trump also claimed to have never met Carroll, he is seen above with Carroll and her then-husband John Johnson alongside his then wife Ivana at a 1987 event
Trump, speaking in Iowa on Saturday as the Republican frontrunning presidential candidate in advance of a Jan. 15 primary, criticized the judge as a ‘radical Democrat’.
He also mocked E. Jean Carroll for not screaming when she was attacked. saying: ‘It was all made up.’
Carroll, 80, won a $5 million award last May from a jury that concluded Trump sexually abused her in 1996 in a luxury department store dressing room and defamed her in 2022.
In the upcoming trial, a jury will consider whether damages should be levied against Trump for remarks he made after last year’s verdict.
Carroll is seeking $10 million in compensatory damages and substantially more in unspecified punitive damages at the trial. She will testify and Trump is listed as a witness.