Trump ducked a question Alina Habba asked him on the stand — legal expert explains why

Trump ducked a question Alina Habba asked him on the stand — legal expert explains why
Donald Trump at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. White House Photo by Tia Dufour.

Donald Trump was asked, among other things, by his lawyer Alina Habba, "Did you ever instruct anyone to hurt Ms. Carroll."

Trump didn't answer the question — something at least one legal analyst finds telling.

Instead, Trump said, "I just wanted to defend myself, my family and, frankly, this presidency."

Former Southern District of New York prosecutor Kristy Greenberg pointed out that Trump didn't say "yes or no."

"That's the delta," she explained. "He knows when he makes these statements about E. Jean Carroll, he knows the influence that he has over his followers. It's similar to Jan. 6th, when he's putting out various messages about, 'Come. Let's be wild.' The idea that he would have no idea the influence he would have and what would happen, I mean, that's why Jack Smith has charged him with exploiting those messages and exploiting the violence that he knew would come. It's very similar here."

She recalled that throughout the trial the jury has been told about rape and death threats that were sent to Carroll after she accused him of raping her — before and after Trump defamed her by denying it.

ALSO READ: Alina Habba is persona non grata at her Pennsylvania law school

Trump has already been found liable of sexual abuse and defamation. The ongoing trial relates to separate defamatory comments he made about the same attack. The jury is considering damages as the judge has already ruled him liable.

"He knows the effect of his words," said Greenberg. "He knows when he keeps saying she's a liar, that he's never met her and she's this terrible person, he knows what will follow, and in fact, intends it. That was the argument from E. Jean Carroll's attorneys at the opening. He intended for this violence to happen. Once it became clear that these tweets were happening, at no point did Donald Trump say, 'Hey, cut it out. Don't threaten her life. Don't threaten to rape this woman.'"

Like with Jan. 6, Trump never told his supporters not to go on the attack, she said.

"So, the parallels are similar, and the fact that he did not answer that question, did you ever instruct anyone to hurt her, yes or no, just tells you that he really doesn't want to disclaim his influence from his supporters, because they're actually doing what he wants them to do," Greenberg closed.

See her comments in the video below or at the link here.

This is the question from Alina Habba that Trump never answered www.youtube.com

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A powerful voting bloc that helped President Donald Trump win the 2024 presidential election has turned on him ahead of a crucial midterm election, according to a new report.

Republicans now fear they'll lose Senate control as Arab American voters flock to Democratic candidate Abdul El-Sayed and abandon the Trump-endorsed candidate, former Michigan Rep. Mike Rogers (R), Politico reported Sunday.

“Once the administration got into the White House, everything we were told kind of flip-flopped,” said Hassan Nehme, who served as the Michigan Republican Party’s vice chair during the 2024 cycle.

“We lost all traction. Republicans are kind of dead in the water.”

Detroit-area Arab Americans are reportedly "fed up" with the ongoing war in Iran, the slow peace process in Gaza, and attacks on El-Sayed they perceive to be blatantly Islamophobic.

Rogers attacks El-Sayed for campaigning with Hasan Piker and circulates reports that seek to link El-Sayed’s father-in-law to the Muslim Brotherhood. Republicans call him by his full name, Abdulrahman Mohamed El-Sayed.

“I most certainly will not support a candidate that is alienating and vilifying my community,” said Faye Nemer, who met with Trump in 2024. “I was fully prepared to support Mr. Rogers. … But after seeing the direction that he chose to proceed in, that’s given me a lot of pause.”

Imam Husham Al-Husainy, slated to offer a benediction at Trump's inauguration until pro-Israel conservatives lobbied against it, now backs El-Sayed.

Amer Ghalib, nominated by Trump to serve as ambassador to Kuwait, warned Republicans to be worried.

“[The GOP] should be more concerned about losing the long-term trust of the Arab American community than about losing the gains they made in 2024," Ghalib said.

“There is a tremendous work that needs to be done … to address people’s concerns and regain their trust."

Rogers’ campaign, when asked for comment, defended his platform.

“Mike Rogers welcomes all Michiganders, regardless of faith, socioeconomic status, or background, to our campaign to Get Michigan Working Again,” said spokesperson Alyssa Brouillet. “The same can’t be said about Abdul El-Sayed, who continues to fan the flames of antisemitism, sympathizes with the terrorist attacker who tried to mass murder 140 kids in a Michigan synagogue, and refuses to disavow Hasan Piker, who calls Jews ‘inbred.’”

El-Sayed campaign spokesperson Cole Wozniak responded to Politico's request for comment with scorn.

“Mike Rogers is resorting to cheap attacks to distract from his deep record as a corrupt career politician who has taken millions from Big Pharma,” Wozniak said in a statement.

“Michiganders see right through it, and they’re not going to let Mike Rogers distract from the fact he’s spent thirty years in Washington making himself and his billionaire donors richer while selling out working families.”

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President Donald Trump erupted Sunday in a lengthy rant against Canada amid the ongoing trade war between Washington and Ottawa, a dispute that experts warn could soon “spiral” and cost tens of thousands of jobs, or more.

“I don’t want Canadian cars, I don’t want Canadian parts, I don’t want Canadian anything. They’ve been ripping us off for decades, and it’s going to stop,” Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social.

“This should have happened long ago with other Presidents, just as stopping Iran should have happened long ago. They want to be treated like a State, but they aren’t one. I deal with the Leadership of many Countries, but I find Canada to be the worst. They are entitled no longer!”

Trump imposed a 50% tariff on $20 billion of Canadian goods earlier this month after Canadian officials refused to cave to his administration’s demands, which Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney claimed would have stripped Canada of its sovereignty as it relates to its ability to trade with other nations.

Carney has responded by vowing to match Trump’s tariffs “dollar for dollar,” with Canadian tariffs on U.S. goods appearing specifically designed to target states “with competitive midterm elections” for maximum pressure, CBS News reported.

In a follow-up post, Trump urged “all" Canadian companies to move to the United States “immediately” to avoid his new tariffs.

“Many of them are Companies that moved out years ago due to stupid U.S. Leadership,” Trump wrote. “When you move back, there are no TARIFFS!”

A scandal-beleaguered Texas candidate running on President Donald Trump's questionable endorsement spewed a word salad Sunday when asked why he had three primary homes.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton — running for the U.S. Senate against state Rep. James Talarico — spluttered on and on about his state's constitution, various counties, the locations of a few of his 15 homes, and fraud.

"So this idea that somehow that's fraudulent, they of course aren't following Texas law," Paxton declared. "They don't real– either don't realize or they're being deceptive — about what was required under the Texas Constitution that was changed."

Paxton was responding to multiple reports that he and his wife had been able to improperly lock in low interest rates by claiming three different homes, one worth $1.5 million, as primary residences. (The New York Times estimates Paxton owns 15 homes worth about $9 million.)

Past Paxton scandals include a grand jury indictment on felony securities fraud charges, whistleblowers’ accusations that led to the Texas House impeaching him, and allegations that he helped a campaign donor in exchange for home renovations, according to the Texas Tribune.

Talarico has also campaigned on the promise he won't steal his constituent's pens, as one local resident has accused Paxton of doing.

On Saturday, Talarico dropped his first attack ad of the campaign targeting the accusations of corruption that plague Paxton.

"He now owns fifteen homes while most Texans can't afford one," Talarico says in the ad. "We cannot afford Ken Paxton's corruption."

While the ad didn't reference the primary-homes issue, Paxton suggested his competitor was the source of the claim — not reporting from the Associated Press.

Here's what Paxton had to say:

“Yeah. So in Texas, the Constitution used to require that you, if you're a statewide officeholder, you have to move to the capital. So I used to live in Collin County. I had, when I became attorney general, I bought a condo in Austin so that I could live in the capital pursuant to what the Constitution required. Well, then my wife became a state senator. She wanted to buy a house, and by the way, that became my primary residence because it was required by the Constitution. So, when we bought a new house, we moved our primary residence to – to a house. So that was, both were dictated by the Constitution, and then they changed the Constitution. They got rid of that requirement that you have as a statewide officer that you have to have a residence, or you have to live, whatever that means, in – in Austin. And so when that happened, I moved back to Collin County. So this idea that somehow that's fraudulent, they of course aren't following Texas law. They don't real – either don't realize or they're being deceptive about what was required under the Texas Constitution that was changed. So this, this is, just a con job by James Talarico, again, because he doesn't want you to know that he's a radical leftist, that he supports all these crazy agendas."

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