CNN’s senior legal analyst Elie Honig said New York Attorney General Letitia James tried to bring “drama” in having Ivanka Trump testify, but her bid failed to work.
Ivanka Trump appeared in court Wednesday to testify in a civil fraud trial brought by James’ office against former President Donald Trump and his two adult sons. Ivanka was asked questions relating to a penthouse apartment she leased from her father as well as her involvement in securing loans from Deutsche Bank.
“Do you think anything that happened yesterday will have a dramatic impact on the future of this case?” host Phil Mattingly asked.
“I think it’s clear now. The main purpose of calling Ivanka Trump to the stand was calling Ivanka Trump to the stand, to get the spectacle, to put the attorney general on the steps of the courthouse, to draw the TV cameras. Her testimony was largely neither here nor there,” Honig said.
“One of the so-called big moments was when Ivanka Trump testified about how when Deutsche bank made a loan to the Trump organization, Deutsche bank originally requested $3 million, that Donald Trump maintain his personal wealth, net worth at $3 billion. They negotiated it down to $2.5 billion. Big deal. Borrowers always try to negotiate down the amount of guarantee that they put up. I just didn’t see anything there. I don’t think you’re going to hear any reference to Ivanka Trump in the AG’s closing argument.”
“Fair, her testimony may not have been that valuable. But can I just present the other side of it, which is how could you not bring her to testify when she’s the one that brought Deutsche bank to the table for these loans for the president, when she was the one who was very involved in the deal for the post office? Like wouldn’t the AG make a misstep by not bringing her?” co-host Poppy Harlow asked. “Talk about how you think the AG has handled this case.” (RELATED: Dem AG Violated Court Order By Demanding To Know How Social Media Companies Are Censoring Content, Watchdog Says)
“I don’t think she backfired on the AG. Sometimes you do have a witness who provides a few details, a few facts, that’s fine. But I think the drama the AG tried to bring to this in making a dramatic statement was out of line with the actual importance of Ivanka Trump’s testimony,” Honig said.
He added he believes Ivanka only had “marginal information” to offer.