MSNBC news reporter Adam Reiss explained on Sunday that Donald Trump "couldn't control himself" the last time he tried to testify before the New York fraud trial. It's unclear if that's the reason Trump withdrew from testifying on Monday, but there are some educated guesses from two analysts.
"We had this exact conversation as to whether or would he not testify on Monday," said Sunday host Yasmin Vossoughian. "You said to me, listen, at this point, he's going to testify. But you really never know with the former president. We will really know, and he actually shows up on Monday morning for that testimony. You predicted, accurately, that he was not going to be there. He's not going to testify."
Legal analyst Lisa Rubin said that it's something she predicted simply because every time Trump opens his mouth it's a disaster.
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"In addition to the fact, Yasmin, that this is the schedule scrambling again, and whether the court can happen tomorrow, as Adam was just talking about," said Rubin. "Eli Bartov, the accounting expert, still has time left on cross-examination. at this late stage, it's unclear whether he can come to court tomorrow, whether he is available, and or whether either of the rebuttal witnesses can come. Given that there are rebuttal expert witnesses I would expect that they need to hear the conclusion of Bartov's testimony in order to testify themselves."
Bartov was paid nearly $900,000 for his testimony.
She anticipated there might not be court at all on Monday as a result of the new news from Trump.
"One of the reasons I kept saying to everyone that he wouldn't show up goes back is the gag order," Rubin continued. "I have said to you and I've said on our air that I really thought it was untenable for the former president to come and testify and a time when he might not be able to resist the impulse to complain about Judge [Arthur] Engoron's principal law clerk, while he was sitting just feet away from her. He did an okay job last week in court not stepping over that line. But of course, he wasn't on the stand at that time. the man is nothing else than an impulsive witness who every time he opens his mouth in a legal proceeding, he generally gets himself in more and more trouble."
Her example was when he admitted openly that he had the final say on his own financial statements and that he reviewed them. While he remained nonchalant about the comment, it proved a key piece of the attorney general's case for her.
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Legal analyst: Trump 'generally gets himself in more and more trouble' opening his mouthyoutu.be
