Trump's Fiery Courtroom Clash: 21 Key Takeaways from New York's Show Trial

In case you missed this yesterday, the leading GOP presidential candidate, Donald Trump, took the stand in New York, and right from the onset, it was clear that this was not going to be a friendly court.

Here are 21 takeaways from the show trial in New York:

1. As I said, right from the beginning, it was evident that the court was not friendly to Trump.

2. For instance, Judge Engoron told Trump, “You can attack me, you can do whatever you want. But answer the question.”

3. He also told him to simply answer questions and not give speeches, "Please just answer the question, no speeches," he told Trump.

4. “That was a yes or no question. Please answer yes or no when you receive such a question," Judge Engoron again told Trump.

5. Judge Engoron even told Trump's attorneys to sit down, just sit down. “We are here to hear him answer questions,” Judge Engoron said.

6. Judge Engoron even told Trump's lawyer to 'control your client' almost as if things were getting out of control in the courtroom.

7. After a short break, Judge Engoron did not give Trump any breathing space. For instance, after Trump returned to the courtroom and mentioned a golf club in Scotland, the Judge stopped him and said, "Irrelevant." Again, he told him, "Irrelevant. Answer the question."

8. Even as he was being scolded, Trump said, "This is a very, very unfair trial, very. And I hope the public is watching it."

9. Trump also used the opportunity to blast Judge Engoron and New York Attorney General Letitia James in court over the judge’s summary judgment that called him a fraud.

10. He said, 'He called me a fraud, and he didn’t know anything about me,' Trump said of Engoron, adding, 'It's a terrible thing you’ve done.'

11. 'You know nothing about me. You believe this political hack back there, and this is unfortunate,' Trump told Engoron, referring to James."

12. In case you forgot, Judge Arthur F. Engoron ruled even before the trial that Mr. Trump and other defendants were liable for fraud and that their annual financial statements were filled with examples of such misconduct. This, even before the trial started.

13. Donald J. Trump is facing a civil fraud trial in a New York courtroom that could impact his business empire and his political ambitions.

14. The trial is a result of a lawsuit filed by New York's attorney general, Letitia James, accusing Trump, his companies, and his sons of inflating asset values to obtain favorable loans and insurance deals.

15. The judge, Arthur F. Engoron, has already ruled that Trump and the other defendants are liable for fraud and will determine their punishment.

16. Letitia James has requested that Trump pay $250 million in damages and that he and his sons be permanently barred from running a business in New York.

17. Trump denied any wrongdoing and argued that differing valuations are common in real estate.

18. Trump admitted to assisting in assembling annual financial statements submitted to banks, but he downplayed their importance, explaining that they were largely left to aides and contained disclaimers that made them essentially "worthless."

19. After Trump's testimony, Attorney General Letitia James took to X and claimed she had 'proven' that Trump committed fraud.

20. She wrote, "This morning, Donald Trump resorted to bullying and name-calling, he gave rambling answers and hurled insults from the witness stand to distract from the truth. But make no mistake, he committed fraud. Numbers and facts don't lie."

21. My take: Based on everything that has transpired in the New York Court yesterday, it seems the judge, Arthur F. Engoron, has already made up his mind on Trump: liable, liable, liable. Everything now just seems like a formality. I believe the only option now would be an appeal!