"It would be a disaster": Judge's ruling could "short-circuit" Trump's plan to testify at trial

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: Salon

Published April 22, 2024 10:26AM (EDT)


The judge overseeing Donald Trump's criminal hush-money trial on Monday ruled that prosecutors can confront the former president with his past misconduct if he chooses to testify.

Merchan ruled that prosecutors can ask Trump about six determinations in four previous court cases, according to NBC News, while noting that he "greatly curtailed" the list of topics the district attorney's office sought to ask about.

Prosecutors can ask about Trump's civil fraud ruling and his repeated violations of a gag order in the case as well as the defamation and rape trials brought by writer E. Jean Carroll and another lawsuit in which the Trump Foundation was found to be engaged in repeated self-dealing.

Trump shook his head several times as Merchan read the ruling, according to The New York Times.

Read more: https://www.salon.com/2024/04/22/it-would-be-a-disaster-judges-ruling-could-short-circuit-trumps-plan-to-testify-at-trial/

[louis-t]

1. This is the sole reason he won't testify.

And it will drive him nuts. More nuts.

[dchill]

10. It it will drive him nutser! 😁

[live love laugh]

34. Yippppeeeee‼️

[Ray Bruns]

2. "It would be a disaster" and hilarious.

[Ocelot II]

3. He was never going to do it in the first place.

He blusters and postures like always, but he won't do it. And his lawyers will have warned him how disastrous it would be if he did (not that he listens to his lawyers). Also, if the lawyers let him testify knowing he'll lie, which he would because he always does, they're in ethical hot water themselves because they'd be suborning perjury - they'd have to withdraw from representing him.

[demosincebirth]

6. If they swear him in that would be the first lie.

[calimary]

7. No kidding!

[whopis01]

9. The transcript would read like

Judge: Do you swear to tell the truth?
Trump: I do
Judge: Bailiff, lock him up.

[cstanleytech]

25. The Bible would burst into flames as soon as Trump put his hands on it before the bailiff could speak.

Unless of course it's the Trump Bible which probably has a few "adjustments".
For example
EXODUS 20:16 You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor
becomes
EXODUS 20:16 You shall bear false witness against your neighbor

[toesonthenose]

27. Damn you beat me to it lol.

[oldsoftie]

38. Hahahahahahahahaha todays winner. nt

[ShazzieB]

8. "Let him" testify?

Can his lawyers actually prevent him from testifying if he insists on doing so?

Also, if the lawyers let him testify knowing he'll lie, which he would because he always does, they're in ethical hot water themselves because they'd be suborning perjury - they'd have to withdraw from representing him.

I thought the choice of whether to testify was up to him. His lawyers can advise him not to do it, but he's free to ignore their advice if he so chooses, isn't he? Isn't that the way it works?

[whopis01]

11. It is up to him

His lawyers can advise, but they can not force him to remain silent and not testify.

[Ocelot II]

14. What they can do, though, is warn him that if he lies (which he almost certainly will)

he can be charged with perjury (which he also almost certainly will). Furthermore, they'd have to warn him that if they knew he was going to lie they would be obligated to withdraw from representing him because they'd be suborning perjury.

[quakerboy]

20. Are we really thinking that any lawyer who would choose to represent him

a) actually cares about the laws?
b) is aware enough to know if he was lying/planning to lie?
c) is going to get paid for their services?

[Ocelot II]

21. They are being paid and quite well; just not from Trump's own pocket.

The money is coming from campaign funds and donations from the cult. A lawyer like Todd Blanch doesn't work for free, and he certainly doesn't want to lose his law license, whether or not he cares about the law. Some pretty high-profile lawyers have already been disbarred or sanctioned as a result of their work for Trump, and I'm sure the current lawyers have noticed.

[NonPC]

33. Or That Trump Would Worry About a Perjury Charge?

$1000 fine, never to be collected...

[eggplant]

26. I love your avatar!

[whopis01]

28. Thanks!

[LeftInTX]

18. No. He won't anyway. Although he loves "testifying" at his one way rallies, he knows he doesn't do well with questions

Although he loves "testifying" and spew BS at his one way rallies, if he tries this in court, he will be questioned and then his lies will be exposed. OJ didn't testify. John Gotti didn't testify. Casey Anthony didn't testify. Generally, celebrity defendants don't testify.

Trump would be a horrible witness and he knows it. It would be his worst campaign event.


Trump is just gonna be defiant by zoning out through most of this. This is what he will convey to the jury with his body language: "This is so boring. Aren't you bored also? How can you follow this? If I can't follow this, then you can't follow this. You can't follow this because it's made up. I can't be guilty, because this is too complicated. I'm falling sleep. I'm rolling my eyes. "

The Casey Anthony case should have been a slam dunk. Somehow Casey Anthony's attorneys convinced a jury that her parents murdered her daughter. (Her parents became hostile witnesses for the prosecution, because they didn't want Casey on death row) There was evidence that her daughter's body was in the trunk of her car. They convinced the jury that evidence in the trunk was " vague, complicated and far fetched"...

[SomewhereInTheMiddle]

24. Agreed ...

He does not want to testify in a judicial sense where he is subject to cross-examination and laws of perjury. He wants to testify in a pseudo-religious sense in that he offers up his own revelation of the Truth according to Trump. He wants to bloviate and pontificate and be immune from question or doubt.

As far as I know that does not work in a US court. And for that Trump will likely blame the judge, the Democrats, the President, and all the world that is trying to hold him down.

Or that is what I hope will happen he will either stay quiet in the courtroom and be found guilty based on evidence. Or he will testify and be damned by his own words.

[Escurumbele]

12. The judge just gave him an excuse to not testify.

[Ocelot II]

13. Not that he was ever going to in the first place.

[ProfessorGAC]

32. You Already Answered The Question I Was Going To Ask

I wondered about the liability of putting a witness on the stand you knew was going to lie.
You addressed that. Thanks

[AZSkiffyGeek]

4. If he testified it would be an endless litany of "objection" as he tried to filibuster from the witness stand

It would be hilarious but get obnoxious real quick. And without a TV camera it wouldn't do anything for him but annoy the judge.

[leftieNanner]

15. Annoy the judge.....

And the jury.

[TBF]

5. Todd Blanche is not that stupid -

former prosecutor & worked at Cadwalader. This is not someone who would willingly make a mistake like that.

[keithbvadu2]

16. Perjury trap! Perjury trap!

It is impossible to fall into a perjury trap if you tell the truth.

Donald's lawyers would have some genuine worries here.

[Orrex]

17. Served on a jury in a Murder 1 trial last year

The defendant represented himself.

He took the stand solely to give himself a chance to spew his bullshit full blast, and when the prosecutor began his cross the defendant refused to answer. Ultimately the judge struck his entire testimony.

It didn't matter because he was obviously guilty, but maybe Trump was hoping for something similar, a chance to spew bullshit at the jury under the guise of "telling his story."

[Novara]

19. He is far too much of a coward to testify

However, I guarantee that he will say that he is looking forward to testifying and at the last minute he'll chicken out.

The lawyers can be as smart (doubt it with who he always ends up with) as hell and they can be persuasive as hell. He won't let anyone tell him what to do. They will have to treat him like a fragile child and make him think that not testifying was ALL HIS IDEA and it's THE BEST IDEA EVER.

Just like a child.

[twodogsbarking]

22. Jugdge smart, Trump not.

[mockmonkey]

23. He won't testify

Later he was tell his moronic followers that the corrupt Judge wouldn't let him testify.

[3825-87867]

29. Legal question for the group.

What happens if the lawyers all quit...maybe because if he wants to testify and they know he'll lie and they could be in trouble?
Would that be the delay he wants?


(Edit for spelling, duh!)

[progressoid]

31. Variations of this have been toyed with.

It's my understanding that the consequences of this would be at the discretion of Judge Merchan.

https://www.newsweek.com/donald-trump-may-fire-legal-team-delay-trial-attorney-1885484

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

30. All his testimony will be spoken from the courthouse steps.

Inside the courtroom, his lawyers will do all they can to shut him up.

Good luck, folks.

[magicarpet]

35. trDUMP is a perfectly perfect human being.

Many people are jealous.
That is why they seek to persecute him under the guise of a supposedly warranted prosecutions.

The Tangerine Messiah is God's chosen one to lead AmeriKKKa until the day he is called home to heaven to endlessly play golf with God, Jesus, & the Holy Ghost.

Satan cheats at golf,.. so trDUMP refuses to play or be seen on the golf course with him.

[Mopar151]

37. He owes Satan $100 from that time that Fartzmeyer thought that he could outcheat...nt

[Conjuay]

39. He will cheat

That's his premise of heaven

[Cha]

36. Hallelujah! So Proceed TSF

TY