New order by Bronx Supreme Court Justice requires Trump's testimony before trial

[Miles Archer]

A lawsuit brought by protesters who contend they were roughed up by security personnel outside Trump Tower in 2015 has suddenly become an urgent problem for President Donald Trump’s legal team after a New York judge ruled Friday that Trump must submit to a videotaped deposition in the case.

Despite the swirl of congressional litigation involving Trump and the intensifying efforts to impeach him in the House, the Bronx-based suit jumped to the forefront of the White House’s legal concerns because — as it stands now — the new order by Bronx Supreme Court Justice Doris Gonzalez requires Trump’s testimony before the trial. The case is currently set to open Thursday.

“More than 200 years ago our founders sought to escape an oppressive, tyrannical governance in which absolute power vested with a monarch. A fear of the recurrence of tyranny birthed our three-branch government adorned with checks and balances,” Gonzalez wrote in her ruling. “No government official, including the Executive, is above the law.”

Trump’s lawyers could ask the judge to delay the trial or file an appeal to try to block the order for the president’s testimony. There’s also the chance of an emergency appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court or that Trump might simply ignore the judge’s order and see what sanctions she imposes.

Trump’s attorneys could seek to appeal or stay the ruling, but their chances in New York state courts appear slim.

https://www.politico.com/story/2019/09/22/trump-testimony-legal-deposition-1507272