Arthur Engoron

Donald Trump attacked the judge overseeing his New York fraud trial in an overnight post ahead of testimony from his two eldest sons.

The former president's adult sons Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump – who are both executive vice presidents at the Trump Organization – are expected to testify back to back on Wednesday in the civil trial overseen by New York Supreme Court Justice Arthur Engoron, and his concern was apparent in the 2:28 a.m. post on Truth Social.

Donald Trump attacked New York Attorney General Letitia James yet again Tuesday — and posted a conspicuously large photo of her smiling in a courtroom.

The former president suggested that James sits idly by in his trial while crime in her state goes unpunished, which has been a frequent theme of his after she filed a $250 million fraud lawsuit against his business empire. The ex-president has made nearly identical claims against Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis as she investigated and then prosecuted his efforts to overturn his Georgia election loss.

They should keep quiet.

That's the unsolicited advice offered up by former federal prosecutor Glenn Kirschner for former President Donald Trump's adult children and heirs when they are brought into New York to testify in his $250 million civil fraud case next week.

Judge Arthur Engoron's $10,000 fine, the second issued to Trump for publicly attacking court staff, "sends exactly the wrong message" as pressure mounts in his many trials, a former federal prosecutor warned.

"I am concerned that with his children testifying this week, with that civil case really going to his brand as an alleged billionaire, with his really possibly leading to his not being able to do any business in New York state whatsoever," Andrew Weissmann said, "that he will continue to act out.

As Donald Trump battles for the future of his Trump Organization in a Manhattan courtroom, evidence submitted shows that a Trump Org vice president admitted that his boss overvalued his Mar-a-Lago property by neary 20 times.

The value of Trump's signature resort in Florida has been front and center in New York Attorney General Letitia James' $250 civil suit that alleges that the former president's company has engaged in years of defrauding banks and insurance companies by inflating its value.

Pending a possible appeal, Ivanka Trump is expected to take the stand in a Manhattan courtroom on Friday where she will be grilled by prosecutors from New York Attorney General Letitia James' office over her complicity in financial fraud committed by the Trump Organization.

Due to a ruling by an appeals court that got her off the hook in the $250 million civil suit — citing the statute of limitations — what she says could have a major impact on the fortunes of Donald Trump and his two sons, Donald Jr. and Eric, as well as executives working for the company which could be dissolved.

Reacting to Donald Trump's refusal to abide by gag orders imposed by Judges Tonya Chutkan and Arthur Engoron, two CNN analysts complained that it is time to seriously drop the hammer on the former president in order to get his attention.

To both CNN contributor John Avlon and legal analyst Elie Hoenig, Trump is being treated like a petulant child and that measures beyond financial penalties the former president can easily pay need to be taken.

After co-hosts Phil Mattingly and Poppy Harlow shared an assorted number of inflammatory social media posts Trump has made recently, Hoenig explained why the fines aren't working.

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"This is a discipline problem, really, first and foremost, by the judge," Hoenig said of Judge Arthur Engoron. "He [Trump] can't help himself. It's like if you have kids, you all know this situation: sometimes you have a big punishment that they know you really won't impose, and then there's a bunch of smaller punishments that the kids aren't really afraid of, and that's what we have here."

"The big punishment is imprisonment," he suggested. "Any of these judges can theoretically imprison Donald Trump, but he knows that's almost certain not to happen. The small punishments, which he doesn't really care about, are the financial punishments. He violated the other gag order twice so far and has been fined $5,000 and $10,000. I think in Donald Trump's mind, it's great. 'I'll keep doing this,' so I'm not exactly sure what these judges do other than hit him with really, really severe financial sanctions."

'The infantilization of Donald Trump continues," Avlon interjected, "literally in that argument."

"Look, this is a case where you need to apply the law fairly and equally, and adjust it for the fact that he can simply discard what to normal working people will be serious financial penalties and act irresponsibly in a way that shows continued contempt for our courts and our system of justice."

"Can't be allowed to do it," he insisted. "Don't treat him like a child! He's a former president, he should be held to a higher standard, not a lower one."

Watch below or at the link.

MSNBC's Mika Brzezinski questioned the wisdom of Donald Trump attacking the judge in his fraud trial and acting rudely in court.

New York judge Arthur Engoron has already found the former president liable for fraud in the $250 million lawsuit brought by attorney general Letitia James, and the "Morning Joe" co-host criticized Trump for antagonizing the sole authority to decide how much he would pay in penalties at the conclusion of the bench trial.

Appearing on MSNBC early Monday, conservative attorney George Conway suggested that Donald Trump's recent rants about what is going on in Judge Arthur Engoron's courtroom in Manhattan is a sign that he has grown increasingly panicked that his fortune will be stripped away from him.

Appearing on MSNBC's "Morning Joe," Conway noted that three Trump children, Donald Trump Jr., Ivanka Trump and Eric Trump will be testifying in the $250 million civil suit trial this week in a case where Engoron has already ruled that financial fraud has occurred.