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Ivanka Trump and her two brothers could incriminate themselves under cross-examination during Donald Trump's civil fraud trial, according to a former federal prosecutor.
Speaking on his Justice Mattersshow on YouTube, Glenn Kirschner, a legal analyst for NBC and MSNBC and frequent Trump critic, was reacting to the news that the former president's daughter must testify in the civil trial brought as part of New York Attorney General Letitia James' lawsuit against the former president, two of his sons, Eric and Donald Trump Jr, and the family real estate company, The Trump Organization.
Ivanka Trump, who left The Trump Organization in 2017 to join her father's White House administration, was originally named in James' lawsuit alleging that the Republican primary frontrunner fraudulently inflated the value of his assets and properties in financial statements for years. She was dismissed from the case in June due to the statute of limitations for most of the allegations against her.
On Friday, Judge Arthur Engoron, who is overseeing the civil trial, ordered Ivanka Trump to take the stand and answer questions under oath about her father's finances, with her testimony expected in the coming days. The former president and his two adult sons, who all deny any wrongdoing in connection to James' lawsuit, are also expected to testify as part of the trial.
Kirschner suggested that things are "about to go from bad to worse" for Donald Trump when he and his three children testify in the civil trial, with Engoron having already ruled that the former president committed fraud while filing financial statements that overvalued several of his properties and assets.
"Do you really think there's a chance that Don Jr, and Eric and Ivanka can get through their sworn testimony without lying, without perjuring themselves?" Kirschner asked during his online show.
"After all, they're going to be testifying about their business practices, their father's business practices, after Judge Engoron has already granted partial summary judgment. In other words, the judge has already found that there was massive business fraud committed by Donald Trump and others at The Trump Organization.
"The Supreme Court has said that cross-examination is, 'The greatest legal engine ever invented for the discovery of the truth,'" Kirschner added.
"Do you really think Don Jr, Eric and Ivanka are going to be able to withstand the rigors of examination and cross-examination? They are hostile witnesses, they will be cross-examined by New York Attorney General Letitia James' team."
Ivanka Trump's office and The Trump Organization have been contacted for comment.
Kirschner also suggested that the former president might perjure himself during his testimony in New York and said he hoped the Republican would be held accountable should he do so.
While reacting to the announcement that his daughter will be made to testify, Trump accused Engoron of being "grossly incompetent" and a "partisan political hack" in a Truth Social post.
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About the writer
Ewan Palmer is a Newsweek News Reporter based in London, U.K. His focus is reporting on US politics, and Florida ... Read more