New York judge knew he'd been played by Trump: legal analyst

Legal analyst Lisa Rubin was in the New York courtroom last week during the final day of Donald Trump's fraud trial. She explained that it became undeniable that the presiding judge, Arthur Engoron, knew that the ex-president "played" him.

As Trump begins to attack a new judge, this time in the E. Jean Carroll case, there's a new opportunity for a new Trump target.

Judge Lewis Kaplan presided over the first Carroll case last spring, where a jury ruled against Trump.

"And although Trump never set foot in his courtroom, he's well familiar with Judge Kaplan's rulings," Rubin said on MSNBC. "Judge Kaplan ruled that because a jury found last spring that Donald Trump had sexually [abused] and defamed E. Jean Carroll, those issues are not up for debate at this trial, much like Rudy Giuliani's defamation filed with respect to those two Georgia election workers that recently included the only issue here is about damages."

Read More: Some Republicans hedge while others flee when asked about Trump-Carroll verdict

She explained that Trump is testing how far he can push this judge, but she expects Kaplan to be less patient than Engoron.

"That's both because of the differences between federal and state court, but also because he picked the wrong guy to mess with," Rubin said. "Lewis Kaplan is the same judge who presided over Sam Bankman-Fried's recent federal trial. He is known for being smart, no-nonsense, and particularly protective of the people in his courtroom and the courthouse. I think you'll see if Trump tries more shenanigans, it's not going to work with Lewis Kaplan."

While Trump has complained that he wants to attend the trial and that the judge put him in a difficult position with the dates for the case. The judge made it clear that the trial would not be delayed. Rubin said she doubts Trump will show up at all.

MSNBC host Alex Witt recalled the Trump meltdown in court before Engoron on Thursday and asked what Rubin gathered from the judge as he watched the drama unfold.

"I think that the judge knew that he had been played," said Rubin. "Obviously, we saw that email exchange between Judge Engoron and the lawyers at the attorney general's office, and the lawyers representing Trump. In that penultimate email, he said to Trump lawyer Chris Kise, take it or leave it. And yet, you saw a much more subdued Judge Engoron on Thursday. He was almost exasperated."

She noted that Trump's team ran out the clock on its statements, but Chris Kise stood up and said Trump wanted time to speak.

Read More: 'He can't control himself': Trump put on notice judges may be forced to jail him

"I think at that point, Engoron was exhausted," said Rubin. "But I will also note Alex, for you and our viewers, he had faced a bomb threat at this home that morning. That's not to say that former President Trump was responsible for that, but I wonder how much a person can be attacked and threatened before they are just tired, and they give in."

She called it the most "dangerous" piece of the ordeal. Ultimately, Trump got everything he wanted by using attacks and taking advantage of terrorism.

See the discussion in the video below or at the link here.

New York judge knew he'd been played by Trump: legal analystyoutu.be