Can Donald Trump Control His Rage?

Donald Trump made scathing remarks about Michael Cohen just before Cohen gave evidence against him at a fraud trial on Tuesday—despite a judge's warning that he may jail Trump if he publicly attacks witnesses.

Trump also managed to get a swipe at the same judge in his comments to the media outside the New York courtroom.

"[Cohen] is a proven liar. He's a felon that served time for lying. He's trying to get a better plea deal. This case, by any other judge, would've been over a long time ago," Trump told reporters before entering the courtroom.

Media analysts are now wondering if Trump can control his rage for the rest of the trial, especially during the evidence of Cohen, his former attorney and friend.

Cohen was due to give evidence on Tuesday in New York Attorney General Letitia James' $250 million lawsuit. Trump is accused of inflating his net worth by billions of dollars to obtain benefits such as better bank loans and reduced tax bills between 2011 and 2021. Trump maintains his innocence in the case, accusing prosecutors of targeting him for political purposes.

Legal commentator and former Watergate prosecutor, Jill Wine-Banks, wrote on X on Monday that Cohen would be "a believable and unintimidated witness telling a narrative corroborated by documents."

"Tomorrow will be exciting. Will Trump control his rage?" she asked.

In a ruling last Friday, New York Judge Arthur Engoron fined Trump $5,000 for breaking the gagging order and said the court "is way beyond the 'warning' stage."

"Make no mistake," Engoron added. "Future violations, whether intentional or unintentional, will subject the violator to far more severe sanctions, which may include, but are not limited to, steeper financial penalties, holding Donald Trump in contempt of court, and possibly imprisoning him."

Last Wednesday, Engoron admonished Trump for his courtroom behavior.

Engoron issued the warning after Trump conferred animatedly with his lawyers at the defense table during real-estate appraiser Doug Larson's second day of testimony at the Manhattan trial. Trump could be seen throwing his hands in the air during Larson's testimony.

State lawyer Kevin Wallace asked Engoron to ask the defense to "stop commenting during the witness's testimony", adding that the "exhortations" were audible on the witness's side of the room. The judge then asked everyone to keep their voices down, "particularly if it's meant to influence the testimony".

Trump's niece, Mary Trump, an ardent opponent of his uncle, said last week that she hoped that he would violate the gag order if it meant he would end up in jail and asked if there was anything she and her supporters could do to make it happen. She was speaking on her "The Good In Us" video blog to former attorney, Joe Gallina, a moderator with the Call To Activism group that promotes Democratic Party candidates. Gallina said Trump is in "serious legal jeopardy" and could face fines and imprisonment if he violates the gag order.

Legal analyst Lisa Rubin noted on X, formerly Twitter on Tuesday that Trump "is already under a very narrow gag order" and that the judge "warned that future violations could result in much harsher penalties, including possible jail time."

"After that experience, how is Judge Engoron going to react if Trump goes after Cohen as he is testifying?" Rubin asked. She also claimed that last week, during the testimony of appraiser Doug Larson, Trump's reactions "were distracting, loud and in the Attorney General's team's view, inappropriate. Judge Engoron asked everyone to keep their voices down, 'particularly if it's meant to influence the testimony'," she wrote.

Engoron ruled last month that Trump, his adult sons, their businesses and executives committed fraud and will now decide on six other accusations, including falsifying business records, insurance fraud, and conspiracy claims during the trial. Trump's attorneys did not request a jury, so Engoron will rule on the other accusations.

Cohen, a one-time Trump ally who turned on him after serving a sentence for allegedly helping Trump make hush payments to adult film actor Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 presidential election, posted a message to Trump ahead of his testimony on X.

He warned Trump that he will "continue" to speak out against him, even if doing so is "exhausting" in a series of posts made on Monday.

"I will continue to speak truth to power...no matter Donald's continued smear and harassment campaign against me," he wrote, later adding that standing up to Trump is "exhausting to do so and Donald knows it."

As he arrived at the New York courthouse yesterday, Cohen told reporters: "This is not about Donald Trump vs. Michael Cohen, or Michael Cohen vs. Donald Trump. This is about accountability, plain and simple."

Newsweek emailed Trump's lawyers for comment.