New York Attorney General Letitia James says Donald Trump Jr. showed “very little understanding” of the financial machinery within the Trump Organization despite being a senior player in the family business for years.
Ms. James, a Democrat, criticized Mr. Trump Jr. in a social media video ahead of his second day of testimony in the civil trial that accuses former President Donald Trump and his adult sons of submitting fraudulent financial statements to gain favorable terms on loans and insurance.
Mr. Trump Jr., the ex-president’s oldest child, testified that he relied on accountants to prepare financial statements while he spent his time on real estate deals.
Ms. James cast doubt on the testimony in her video appraisal, saying Mr. Trump Jr. “claimed to have very little understanding of the accounting and legal mechanics of the family business.”
“But we know he has been involved in running the Trump Organization for a long time,” she said.
Ms. James is expected to call Mr. Trump’s second-oldest son, Eric Trump, to the witness stand after his brother is done. The brothers and their father are named as defendants in the lawsuit.
“We will continue to show their involvement in the family’s fraudulent business practices,” Ms. James said.
During his second day of testimony, Mr. Trump Jr. said while his signature appeared on financial statements at the heart of the case, he did not work on them, relied on his legal department’s opinion and “signed accordingly,” according to ABC News.
The ex-president’s daughter, Ivanka Trump, is scheduled to appear next week. She is not a defendant in the lawsuit, however, and her attorneys are appealing the ruling that ordered her to testify.
Before the trial began, Judge Arthur Engoron found Mr. Trump liable for misrepresenting the value of some of his properties, handing Ms. James an early victory on one of her claims.
Judge Engoron is presiding over the trial on other claims and potential penalties and will decide the case instead of a jury.
Mr. Trump, the front-runner for the GOP presidential nomination, says Ms. James and Judge Engoron are politically biased against him and are part of a Democratic cabal that is trying to thwart his 2024 bid.
“The RIGGED Trial being ’presided’ over in Manhattan, without a jury allowed, by a TRUMP HATING, RADICAL LEFT, DEMOCRAT OPERATIVE JUDGE, has shown conclusively that the Trump Organization is Financially Strong, Powerful, Very Liquid, AND HAS DONE NOTHING WRONG,” Mr. Trump wrote Thursday on his social media platform.
His defense team says the attorney general’s office does not understand basic real estate practices, and that banks gladly did business with the Trump Organization — and made plenty of money in the process.
• Tom Howell Jr. can be reached at thowell@washingtontimes.com.
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