Lawyers nervous that Trump will react badly to hush money witnesses: CNN's Kaitlan Collins
April 12, 2024
Former President Donald Trump has finally accepted the reality that he will be starting a criminal trial on Monday, CNN's Kaitlan Collins told Jake Tapper on Friday.
This comes after the former president, who has spent years throwing every delay tactic he can at all his various civil and criminal legal proceedings, lost three separate bids this week to delay the Manhattan hush money trial.
"Back to the hush money cover-up trial, which is scheduled to begin Monday jury selection ... what are your sources telling you about Trump's demeanor, his morale in the lead up to Monday?" asked Tapper.
"He's basically accepted that it is happening on Monday," said Collins. "They certainly were trying to delay it. I mean, they already succeeded in delaying it at least a month after they filed that motion about information that they believe, documents they got their hands on too late, so it's already starting later than it was supposed to, but I think that what Trump has accepted now at this point is that it is inevitable, that it is going to start on Monday.
"That has been really the main focus for his legal team over the last several days, is preparing for what Monday is going to look like."
Aside from the obvious challenge of getting an impartial jury that can rule objectively on a former president, Collins said that one of the biggest worries on Trump's legal team is how he will react in front of the various witnesses in the case.
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"I think, Jake, what we've picked up on from talking to sources, what's going to be the most difficult for him, is seeing people like Michael Cohen and Stormy Daniels and Karen McDougal and all of these people in his past ... but also people who once were really close to him, people like Hope Hicks and other of his closest confidantes and former aides that are also going to be potentially called to the witness," said Collins.
"And I think that is what's going to be the most difficult for him. But obviously, you know, he'll be in that courtroom several days a week for at least about six weeks or so."
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