OAN’s Abril Elfi
8:15 AM – Monday, December 11, 2023
Former President Donald Trump has announced he will not be testifying in his fraud civil lawsuit on Monday.
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On Sunday, the 45th president announced the decision on his social media platform Truth Social saying, “ALREADY TESTIFIED TO EVERYTHING & HAVE NOTHING MORE TO SAY.”
Trump Attorney Chris Kise said in a statement “President Trump has already testified.”
“There is really nothing more to say to a Judge who has imposed an unconstitutional gag order and thus far appears to have ignored President Trump’s testimony and that of everyone else involved in the complex financial transactions at issue in the case,” he continued.
Judge Arthur Engoron’s gag order prohibiting Trump from discussing the judge’s staff would have applied if he had testified. The gag order was imposed after the former president insulted the judge’s clerk on social media. Engoron has fined Trump twice for breaking the order.
Alina Habba, another Trump lawyer, stated on Thursday that she had advised Trump not to testify due to the gag order.
“He still wants to take the stand even though my advice is at this point you should never take the stand with a gag order. But he is so firmly against what is happening in this court,” she said.
Though Engoron’s gag order is still in effect, Trump’s legal team has appealed it. The judge rejected a request from Trump’s lawyers last week to delay their client’s testimony in the defense case until the appeals court resolved the gag order.
Engoron criticized Trump for his aggressive testimony during last month’s questioning by the New York attorney general’s office, accusing the attorney general, the judge, and the case itself instead of paying attention to the questions.
Attorney general, Letitia James, is requesting $250 million in damages as well as a ban on Trump doing business in the state.
In order to secure a better loan, the attorney general has filed a complaint against Trump, his company, and his sons, alleging that they have falsely inflated the values of their properties.
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