Well, it seems it’s official. With the statement The Defense rests the issue of whether or not Donald Trump would defy all reason and legal advice from friends an foes alike and take the witness stand we now know. Trump will NOT testify in his own defense. We expected this, but still… this is Trump after all and his ego, his belief he can sling enough bullsh*t to fool anyone on any topic had us all wondering. You have to wonder if there is anyone else in the entire world experiencing the amount of humiliating self loathing Trump is feeling right now.
And let’s face it – you KNOW Trump was dying to get up there and rail about the “unfairness” of it all. To take the slut-shaming of Stormy Daniels his lawyer Susan Necheles did to a whole new level. To go after Michel Cohen like a rabid wolf. To attack his old pal David Pecker, and even Hope Hicks for not sufficiently backing him up. However Trump also knew the time would come when prosecutors got their turn. THAT scared the hell out of Trump. The fact is that although this is his first foray into criminal court he’s had plenty of experience in civil proceedings. Most of the time Trump has settled before things got to trial but he knows his track record is really, and I mean really bad in court proceedings. He knows from deposition what a lousy witness he is on his own behalf.
While there is much to criticize about how his lawyers have handled Trump’s defense the fact is he has some very, very good ones. They’ve no doubt explained to him that if he took the stand he’d be open to all sorts of stuff on cross examination that would bury any chance of acquittal. And Trump knows full well he isn’t admired, or even respected in Manhattan or New York City for that matter. He knows how little New Yorkers think of him. So for all his bluster about being eager to testify, in the end Trump chickened out. He was flat out SCARED. For a guy with Trump’s ego, who has spent his life pumping himself up as the “Alpha Male of alpha males” this is beyond humiliation for Trump to turn tail and run from the moment.
I’ll ask the question again. Right now is there anyone in the world experience the level of self-hatred/loathing and outright humiliation that Donald Trump is feeling?
This is going to haunt him. As I said in the tile ChickenTrump will do plenty of squawking. On Truth Bullsh*t Social. On the campaign trail. In interviews with friendly media pals like Hannity. (Not to mention ordering the entire GOP to do the same) However, Trump didn’t have the guts to get up on that witness stand to defend himself!
Now, in this country we have a legal precept called the presumption of innocence. Think of it as the Fifth Amendment on steroids in a criminal trial. As you know the 5th says no one can be compelled to provide evidence that might incriminate themselves. In criminal court, a defendant is presumed innocent right from the start. The burden is all on the prosecution. They have to convince all twelve jurors beyond a reasonable doubt that any given defendant is guilty of the crimes they’re on trial for. The defense isn’t required to prove jack if they don’t won’t to. That’s why for the most part a typical defense is just to cast doubt on evidence the prosecution presents. The defense has no legal obligation to offer an alternate theory. They don’t have to put on any defense at all.
Most importantly, the jury will be carefully and explicitly instructed by the judge in this or any criminal trial that as a matter of law all the burden falls on the prosecution to prove its case. AND that the defendant(s) has no obligation to prove anything. They don’t have to call witnesses. They don’t have to prove someone else committed any crimes in question. The defendant(s) has no legal obligation to get up on the stand to explain a damned thing.
Most importantly the jury is explicitly instructed that if the defendant(s) doesn’t testify, or the defense doesn’t present its own case it can’t be held against them during deliberations!
The defendant(s) walks into court presumed innocent and remains that way unless/until a jury votes unanimously to convict them. Still, jurors are human beings. They almost always take their duties seriously and do their best to follow the judge’s instructions. But hell, it’s human nature to want to hear from the defendant. As a practical matter (PZ’s Murfster has served on two juries and can attest to this) most jurors want to hear the defendant get on the stand and say they aren’t guilty of what they’ve been accused of. So even though they have to set such feelings aside, they exist.
Jurors are remarkably able most of the time to set aside such personal thoughts but the fact they have to make a conscious effort to do so matters. Whether the law/judge and the defendant(s) and supporters like it or not.
Now add in the actual Trump factor. This is a guy who shouts to the rooftops about everything! For decades New Yorkers put up with him running around proclaiming how “awesome” he was. And as President hearing him describe his actions where any objective person would say he f**ked up as “perfect.” Better than any of us New Yorkers know how much Trump’s “Brand” means to him. Sitting there for weeks with all the evidence presented against him, especially due to a tawdry tale of covering up screwing around on his wife adding the sex-scandal factor into things had to be killing Trump. Every one of those jurors KNOWS it. And like the rest of us thought right up until the defense rested Trump might give in to what we all know was a burning desire to tell HIS side from the witness stand!
Don’t think for a second that at least some jurors won’t think to themselves Trump was too much of a chicken, or perhaps “Cowardly Lion” to get up there and be, well Trump. To blast the evidence, the witnesses against him, the judge, the prosecutors, the legal system in general and even witnesses like Hicks and Pecker who tried to say some nice thing about him for their lack of unqualified worship of him.
Admit it. You KNOW Trump wanted to do exactly that. But he also knew he wasn’t in charge. Not in this courtroom. Not with this judge. And so prosecutors could and would carve him to pieces. Deep down in the places he sometimes can’t avoid visiting in his mind in the wee hours when he can’t sleep Trump knew damn well he was no match for the prosecutors. And that they had too much solid evidence. They had LOTS more than Michael Cohen. So Trump for once listened to his lawyers and chose to chicken out and rely on a legal construct even he doesn’t fully believe in. That his failure to take the stand won’t be held against him.
Trump knows HE would hold it against any other defendant no matter what the judge said. And he’s afraid the jurors in this case will do it to him. But he was even more afraid to face prosecutor’s cross-examination. Either way you cut it Trump is one “bigly” frightened LITTLE man in a orange hued six foot tall bloated body. My how he must be hating himself right now. I can’t wait for his niece Mary Trump who’s a trained and experience Clinical Psychologist has to say. She might want to take a bit of time to process all this but we will soon hear from her. I for one am looking forward to it.
For now, I’m hoping that since closing arguments won’t even take place until next Tuesday we have days and days of variations (and a whole new set of memes) of “Chicken Trump.”
In The Witches of Eastwick, Jack Nicholson, playing the devil, rolled into town as a rich mysterious debonair playboy. In the end, his true nature was revealed…he turned out to be a pitiful tiny insect with Jack’s shriveled features. A good example of this pissant. I never believed he was going to take the stand in ANY of his criminal trials. Just like he ISN’T going to a debate with a REAL moderator and a REAL set of rules. Not gonna happen.
Next week will be momentous. Let’s hope he hasn’t bought a member of the jury. I have no doubt he’d try given the slightest opportunity.
Well, at least when he is found guilty, he can blame his lawyers for not allowing him to testify.
If only that had let him take the stand he would have been found not guilty.
And he will scream that they will appeal all the way to the Sub-prime Court.
Even though they have nothing to appeal on.