Former President Donald Trump has given up hope of winning his $250 million civil fraud trial in New York and is instead focused on spinning the issue to secure his position as the Republican Party’s leading presidential candidate, according to a prominent legal commentator.
John Yoo, a former Bush administration official, said that despite Trump’s challenge that he would overcome accusations of unfairly inflating his wealth, the 77-year-old former commander in chief is already “throwing in the towel” as the trial progresses. It started Monday morning.
“I think Trump has already decided that he is going to lose with the law,” Yoo told Fox News, citing Judge Arthur Engoron’s ruling last week in favor of state Attorney General Letitia James’ main fraud charge.
In a 35-page ruling, Engoron sided with James and revoked the former president’s business licenses in New York, which could hinder his former company’s ability to operate in the Empire State.
“So what I think President Trump has done is turned all of this into a political strategy,” Yoo continued.
John Yoo, a prominent Republican Party legal commentator, said Donald Trump has given up hope of winning his $250 million civil fraud trial in New York. FOXThe former president kept a stern expression in court as he lashed out at the prosecutor and judge before reporters outside. Steven Hirsch
Before the trial began, Trump called James a “racist” and Engoron an “unfair and unhinged” judge who is biased against him.
“This is a judge who should be out of office. “This is a judge who, according to some people, could be criminally charged for what he is doing,” Trump said during the court’s afternoon recess. “He is interfering with the elections and he is a disgrace.”
Yoo described Trump’s harsh words as “the acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention,” and noted that criticizing the judge will do nothing to improve his legal standing in the case.
Trump said Judge Arthur Engoron is biased against him after the judge ruled in favor of the prosecution’s main claim in the trial. REUTERS
“Attacking the judge out of impudence, saying that the press, the chief prosecutor, the attorney general, is racist. Now, there is no way for this judge to rule in favor of President Trump,” Yoo said.
All of these harsh words, Yoo noted, are rather “directed at the political sphere.”
The jurist also doubted that Trump would win the appeal, arguing that the judges would stay away from the case or avoid reversing the facts presented in the trial.
With no hope of winning, Yoo said Trump is focusing his efforts on undermining the Democratic city’s legal system to favor his base.
“So I think what we’re seeing here is really throwing in the towel on the law and using it as a platform to amplify their political message,” the legal expert surmised.
According to a poll conducted exclusively for The Post after Wednesday’s second Republican primary debate, Trump remains the top choice for the Republican presidential nomination.
The poll of 1,303 people, conducted by Leger, found that 62% of GOP voters want to see the former commander in chief emerge as the party’s nominee.
A group held a rally outside the Manhattan courthouse to mark the trial on Monday. AFP via Getty Images
Yoo predicts that in the trial, which is expected to last until the end of December, Trump will further attack the judge and the prosecution.
Although he said Trump would be the clear loser in the case, Yoo admitted that New York City wouldn’t exactly win either, with the case risking labeling the trade center as a place that conservatively owned businesses should avoid.
The fraud lawsuit filed by James accuses Trump, his sons Eric and Don Jr., and the Trump Organization of a decades-long scheme to inflate the value of his assets and save millions in loans and insurance.
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Source: vtt.edu.vn