Former President Donald Trump exhibited his propensity for deceit in a post about his civil rape trial, just prior to the jury’s verdict, by falsely claiming he was prevented from testifying and announcing his intent to appeal.
In 2019, E. Jean Carroll accused Trump of committing a sexual assault on her in a Bergdorf Goodman dressing room in New York City in the 1990s. Trump vehemently denied the allegations and launched a series of assaults against Carroll, which resulted in her filing a defamation lawsuit against him and a distinct civil suit for the alleged rape. The ex-president’s deposition included several startling moments, including one in which he mistook a photo of Carroll for his second wife, Marla Maples. Trump had previously stated that Carroll was “not my type”
Trump had previously stated that he would travel to New York to “confront” Carroll and had referred to the judge in the case as “extremely hostile,” but he neither testified nor attended the trial in person.
Trump posted on Truth Social about the case on Tuesday morning.
“Waiting for a jury decision on a False Accusation where I, despite being a current political candidate and leading all others in both parties, am not allowed to speak or defend myself, even as hard-nosed reporters scream questions about this case at me,” Trump wrote. “In the interim, the opposing party has published a book falsely accusing me of rape and is working with the press.” I will therefore remain silent until the conclusion of the trial, but I will appeal the unconstitutional suppression of me as a candidate regardless of the verdict!”
Trump’s claim that he was “not allowed to speak or defend [himself]” is demonstrably false. The judge had previously reprimanded him for his Truth Social posts about the case, but he always had the option to testify.
