Former federal prosecutor Andrew McCarthy called the civil fraud trial of former President Donald Trump a “farce” Monday, saying Judge Arthur F. Engoron “lost control of his courtroom.”
Trump testified Monday during a contentious day in his civil trial during which he and his attorneys sparred with Engoron. Democratic Attorney General Letitia James of New York sued Trump in September 2022, alleging he overstated the value of real estate holdings in order to obtain loans. (RELATED: Trump Says Letitia James Has ‘Defrauded The Public,’ Rips $18 Million Mar-A-Lago Valuation)
“I really think this is a farce in the sense that the judge actually ruled against Trump before the trial even started,” McCarthy told “America Reports” co-hosts Sandra Smith and John Roberts. “So I kind of chuckle today at hearing that he had turned to Trump’s lawyer and said, ‘Can you control your client?’”
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“The reason the judge has lost control of his courtroom is that he basically told Trump that he had lost before the so-called trial even started and that the ensuing trial, which will go on for two months, or at least at that point in time they said it would go on for two months, all it’s about is how much he’s going to let [Letitia] James run up the score in terms of how much Trump is going to be required to pay,” McCarthy added.
Engoron ruled that Trump was liable for fraud Sept. 26, and ordered that several business licenses Trump held were to be rescinded. An appeals court paused the revocation of the licenses Oct. 6.
“That communicated to Trump that there was no point in fighting this as a legal case because that ship has sailed. He knows he’s lost,” McCarthy said. “So Trump is doing exactly what you would expect somebody like Trump who is running for public office to do. He’s trying to use this as an element of his campaign. There’s no point in fighting it on legal grounds. He’s fighting it on political grounds.”
Democratic Attorney General Letitia James of New York promised to investigate Trump during her 2018 campaign for attorney general, labeling him an “illegitimate president” and repeating that promise after she was elected.
“I don’t think the New York system anymore is a legal system,” McCarthy said after Roberts noted the judge seemed to be unwilling to listen to Trump. “It’s really a political system.”
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