Eric Fights Back In Legalese, Judge: ‘You Don’t Have To Give A Speech’

Eric Trump followed his brother on the stand, as Eric has followed Junior his entire life. The star of the family, Ivanka, is doing everything humanly possible to stay out of the center ring of this circus, but those efforts are futile. She’s been compelled to testify and testify she will. For the moment, however, it’s her older and younger brother on the stand and the younger one got miffed from the get go. ABC News:

Eric Trump grew visibly irritated as he appeared to struggle with his testimony regarding his father’s statement of financial condition.

Resisting state attorney Andrew Amer’s efforts to show he was familiar with the document at the center of the case, he at times raised his voice and punctuated his short answers with phrases like “obviously,” “clearly,” and “as I previously testified.” Other times he responded with lengthy equivocations, prompting Amer to exhort him to keep his answers to “yes or no.”

“You don’t have to give a speech about that,” Judge Engoron implored Eric Trump at one point.

Amer repeatedly asked variations of the same question: Was Eric Trump aware of his father’s statement of financial condition?

“This is not something I ever recall seeing or working on,” Eric Trump said in one clip from his deposition that was played in court. “This is accounting, and that is not what I do on a daily basis.”

And Eric continued on in this vein. At one point he denied he knew anything about appraisals because “I pour concrete.” (Personally?) “I operate properties.” Eric don’t know nuttin’ bout no accountin’ or at least that’s what he wants you to believe.

Eric Trump confidently stood by his past testimony regarding his limited involvement in an appraisal during a heated exchange with state attorney Andrew Amer.

Amer had spent the better part of the afternoon highlighting emails between Eric Trump and a Cushman & Wakefield appraiser, suggesting that Eric Trump was deeply involved in the appraisal of an estate and golf course in New York’s Westchester County. Attempting to paint the testimony as inconsistent, Amer played another portion the deposition Eric Trump had given to investigators.

“I pour concrete. I operate properties. I don’t focus on appraisals between a law firm and Cushman. It’s just not what I do in my day-to-day responsibilities,” Eric Trump said in the deposition.

“Will you concede that your testimony … that you really haven’t been involved in appraisal work on this property was incorrect?” Amer then asked Eric Trump on the stand.

“No. I really hadn’t been involved with appraisal work on that property,” Eric Trump responded. “I was clearly involved to a very small point. I see your emails. One hundred percent. I made phone calls.”

When Amer continued to press the issue, Donald Trump’s attorney Chris Kise loudly objected.

“Are you running the courtroom, or is the judge?” Kise shouted to Amer. “It’s asked and answered, asked and answered, asked and answered, and it’s continued all afternoon. At some point it needs to end.”

“There are a handful of emails well over ten years ago … I stick by that 100%” Eric Trump said.

Could Eric be trying to do damage control for his brother’s testimony? Nah, he’s too dense for that. More soundbites and video for Fox News? Well, Fox News isn’t there, but that’s what Eric knows about speaking in public, so color that one “yes.” Intriguing that Junior was pleasant, yawn-inducingly so, and Eric is hostile. So what will Ivanka be, I wonder?