'Needy, rattled' and 'smaller' by the day: Columnist sees trial taking toll on Trump

Donald Trump boasted that he would use his criminal and civil trials to campaign for president, but he already looks "needy and rattled" after just a week in court, argued one columnist.

The former president – amplified by numerous media outlets – claimed he would bask in the wall-to-wall coverage to manipulate the courts and boost his campaign profile, but that's not what has happened since he lost defamation and fraud judgments for more than a half-billion dollars, wrote Washington Post columnist Jennifer Rubin.

"When the criminal trial actually began, reality hit home," Rubin wrote. "Rather than dominate the proceedings or leverage his court appearance to appear in control and demonstrate no court could corral him, Trump day by day has become smaller, more decrepit and, frankly, somewhat pathetic."

New York Judge Juan Merchan controls his courtroom and hasn't let the ex-president forget that, lecturing him for commenting on jurors and witnesses. And he has ordered Trump to attend trial every day or risk jail time.

"Trump whines that the judge makes him show up every day — even on days his son is graduating from high school or the Supreme Court is hearing his immunity appeal," Rubin wrote. "He is incensed that someone else controls his calendar. It must be a rude awakening to him that in a criminal trial the judge runs the proceedings, not the defendant."

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The former president has apparently dozed off several times in trial, drawing mockery on social media and late-night comedy shows, and Rubin noted the irony of his inability to remain conscious after attacking President Joe Biden's vigor.

"When Trump emerged from court to show off pages of comments from loyal Fox News lackeys knocking the trial, he looked downright needy and rattled," Rubin wrote.

"By the end of each long court day in which the judge, prospective jurors and prosecutors recite bad things about him, a short rant outside the courtroom only underscores the power imbalance. He seems diminished."