Donald Trump's Testimony Shows 'Fear,' Glenn Kirschner Warns 

Former President Donald Trump's "combative" courtroom testimony on Monday is a sign of "fear" amid his ongoing civil fraud trial, former federal prosecutor Glenn Kirschner warns, but one expert tells Newsweek Trump may have been playing a different game.

Trump took the stand in New York City on Monday in Attorney General Letitia James' $250 million civil fraud lawsuit against him, his adult sons, and the Trump Organization, in which they're accused of misrepresenting assets for financial benefits. Trump, who is campaigning for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination and is the current frontrunner, has denied any wrongdoing and has called the trial politically motivated.

In September, Judge Arthur Engoron ruled that the defendants had committed fraud, and the trial will now determine the penalties Trump will have to pay for the financial fraud. The trial will also address other claims, including falsifying business records, issuing false financial statements, insurance fraud, and conspiracy.

Meanwhile on Monday, during his testimony, in which he was questioned about the value of his assets, Trump repeated his assertion that he did nothing wrong and that the trial was "unfair" and politically motivated.

He also claimed the trial was a "witch hunt", prompting the judge to tell Trump's lawyers to "control him."

According to MSNBC legal analyst Lisa Rubin, Judge Engoron advised Trump's attorney Christopher Kise to reign in Trump, saying the trial is not "a political rally."

In a post on X, formerly Twitter, on Tuesday, Rubin also outlined why Trump appeared mad in court saying, "Something that bears clarifying: Trump is mad that Judge Engoron did not let him read from or submit in evidence the disclaimer language that appears in his statements of financial condition. But he shouldn't be. At all."

In response to Trump's testimony on Monday, Kirschner said in a post to X, "Trump's clownish performance on the witness stand in his NY fraud trial PROVES he has no defense on the facts. His combative, insulting, and non-responsive testimony is a sign of weakness, not strength. It's a sign of fear & desperation, not confidence."

Kirschner also said he has seen defendants act like Trump on the stand saying, "The reason defendants do that is because they don't have a winning case on the facts." Kirschner then recited an "often-used phrase" in the law saying, "If you have the facts on your side, you pound on the facts. If you have the law on your side, you pound on the law. If you have neither on your side, you just pound on the table." Kirschner concluded that on Monday, we saw Trump doing "a whole lot of table pounding."

Newsweek has reached out to Trump's campaign via email for comment on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, Palm Beach County State Attorney Dave Aronberg told Newsweek that, "Former President Trump's combative, rambling trial testimony did not help himself with Judge Engoron. But Trump's audience was not the trial judge. He was playing to his MAGA base, which ate up his defiance."

Aronberg continued, "Trump's performance was also directed at the appellate courts, whom he hopes will overturn Judge Engoron's rulings based on judicial bias. That's why Trump seemed to bait the judge during his testimony. Although Judge Engoron grew irritated and made an occasional snarky comment, he didn't seem to say anything that would put his upcoming rulings in jeopardy."

Trump's ongoing civil trial has been marked with numerous tense moments involving the former president. Judge Engoron has at times scolded Trump for his actions in the courtroom and placed a gag order on him over his attacks toward his law clerk on social media.