said Sunday he has decided against testifying for a second time at his , posting a day before his scheduled appearance that he 鈥渧ery successfully & conclusively鈥� testified last month and saw no need to do so again.
The former president, the leading contender for the 2024 Republican nomination, had been expected to return to the witness stand Monday as a coda to his defense against 鈥� lawsuit.
James, a Democrat, alleges Trump inflated his wealth on financial statements used in securing loans and making deals. The case threatens Trump鈥檚 real estate empire and cuts to the heart of his image as a successful businessman.
鈥淚 will not be testifying on Monday,鈥� Trump wrote in an all-capital-letters, multipart statement on his Truth Social platform less than 20 hours before he was to take the witness stand.
鈥淚 have already testified to everything & have nothing more to say,鈥� Trump added, leaving the final word among defense witnesses to an accounting expert hired by his legal team that he found 鈥渘o evidence, whatsoever, for any accounting fraud鈥� in Trump鈥檚 financial statements.
A Trump spokesperson did not immediately respond to questions about his decision.
The decision was an abrupt change from Trump鈥檚 posture in recent days, when his lawyers said he was insistent on testifying again despite their concerns about that has cost him $15,000 in fines for disparaging the judge鈥檚 law clerk.
鈥淧resident Trump has already testified. There is really nothing more to say to a judge who has imposed an unconstitutional gag order and thus far appears to have ignored President Trump鈥檚 testimony and that of everyone else involved in the complex financial transactions at issue in the case,鈥� Trump lawyer Christopher Kise said Sunday.
Trump鈥檚 decision came days after his son, Eric Trump, ditched his return appearance on the witness stand. Trump said on social media that he鈥檇 told Eric to cancel.
It also follows Trump鈥檚 first trip back to court since he testified in the case on Nov. 6. Last Thursday, he as the accounting professor, New York University professor Eli Bartov, blasted the state鈥檚 case and said Trump鈥檚 financial statements 鈥渨ere not materially misstated.鈥�
Trump鈥檚 cancellation caught court officials by surprise. Without Trump on the witness stand, the trial will be on hold until Tuesday, when Bartov will finish his testimony. State lawyers say they鈥檒l then call at least one rebuttal witness.
In a statement, James said whether Trump testified again or not, 鈥渨e have already proven that he committed years of financial fraud and unjustly enriched himself and his family. No matter how much he tries to distract from reality, the facts don鈥檛 lie.鈥�
Trump was often defiant and combative . Along with defending his wealth and denying wrongdoing, he repeatedly sparred with the judge, whom he criticized as 鈥渆xtremely hostile,鈥� and slammed James as 鈥渁 political hack.鈥�
Trump answered questions from state lawyers for about 3 1/2 hours, often responding with lengthy diatribes. His verbose answers irked the judge, Arthur Engoron, who admonished, 鈥淭his is not a political rally.鈥�
Had Trump returned to the stand Monday, it would鈥檝e been his defense lawyers leading the questioning, but lawyers from James鈥� office could have cross-examined him, too.
ruled before the trial that . He ordered that a receiver take control of some Trump properties, but an decision.
Engoron is now considering six other claims, including allegations of conspiracy and insurance fraud. James seeks penalties of more than $300 million and wants Trump banned from doing business in New York. The judge is deciding, rather than a jury, because juries aren鈥檛 allowed in this type of case.
Though testimony is nearly over, the trial that started Oct. 2 will bleed into next year. Closing arguments are scheduled for Jan. 11, just four days before the Iowa caucuses start . Engoron said he hopes to have a decision by the end of January.
Trump has had a prime role in the trial. Along with his testimony, he has voluntarily gone to court eight days to watch witnesses, . During breaks, he has taken full advantage of the cameras parked in the courthouse hallway, spinning what鈥檚 happening inside the courtroom, where cameras aren鈥檛 allowed, in the most favorable light.
Trump鈥檚 frequent presence in court 鈥� as a witness, observer and aggrieved defendant 鈥� has underscored the unique personal stakes for a billionaire who鈥檚 also juggling four criminal cases and a campaign.
Where other politicians have shied from legal peril, Trump has leaned in as his court and political calendars increasingly overlap, with primaries a few weeks away and the first of his criminal trials slated for March.
But Trump鈥檚 interest in vindicating his company and his wealth has also run up against the limitations of the gag order, which was by a state appellate court after a two-week interlude. The same gag order was also in effect when he testified in November.
Despite the gag order, Trump was adamant in recent days that he鈥檇 testify again 鈥� even as one of his lawyers, Alina Habba, said she discouraged him from taking the stand.
鈥淗e still wants to take the stand, even though my advice is, at this point, you should never take the stand with a gag order,鈥� Habba told reporters last week, before Trump changed his mind.
Trump spent Saturday evening with Habba at the New York Young Republican Club鈥檚 black-tie gala. At the event, about a mile from the courthouse, he went on at length highlighting his objections, saying, 鈥淚 have proven my innocence literally every single day.鈥�
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Michael R. Sisak And Jill Colvin, The Associated Press
