Trump storms out of courtroom as Michael Cohen testifies: Fraud trial highlights

Protesters gathered outside the New York courthouse where Trump attended his civil fraud trial chanted “Trump lies all the time.”

Outside the courtroom, Trump criticized the judge for denying his attorney's request for a directed verdict, after Cohen testified that he could not "recall" if Trump or Weisselberg had asked him to inflate numbers.

"That should be the end of the case. If we had a jury, this case would have never started practically," Trump added. "This is a very unfair thing."

Moments earlier, Cohen had clarified in court that Trump didn’t specifically tell him to inflate the numbers, describing the former president's actions as a mob boss telling you what he wants without directly telling you.

Trump's motorcade has now departed the courthouse.

Following his day on the witness stand, Cohen addressed reporters outside the courtroom after Trump stormed out earlier this afternoon.

He addressed the defendants' failed request for a directed verdict.

"They wanted to make a motion to dismiss the case, to which the judge responded: 'Yeah, absolutely not,'" Cohen said. "You know why? Because he will ultimately be held accountable."

"And as I said the other day, that’s what this is all about. It’s accountability."

Cohen is off the stand. Court has been adjourned for the day, with proceedings set to resume at 10 a.m. tomorrow.

A short time after the former president stormed out of the court, he walked back in with his lawyer, Alina Habba.

Robert asked the judge again for a directed verdict. “Absolutely not,” Engoron said, “there's enough evidence in this case to fill the courtroom.”

According to Trump spokesperson, Steven Cheung, the former president will head to the airport from the courthouse following today's proceedings.

Asked if Trump or Weisselberg directed him to inflate the numbers on his personal statement, Cohen said: "Not that I recall."

Cliff Robert, an attorney for the Trumps, then asked for a directed verdict, arguing that the key witness testified that the defendant didn't tell Cohen to inflate the numbers. The judge denied the request.

Trump immediately got up and stormed out of the courtroom with Secret Service agents chasing after him. The move was not expected and appeared to surprise even his attorneys. Gasps could be heard within the courtroom.

Cohen later added that Trump didn't specifically tell him to inflate the numbers, comparing the former president to a mob boss who tells you what he wants without directly telling you.

Trump took the stand for about a minute and was asked about statements he made outside the courtroom, referring to someone as "partisan." Trump said he was referring to Cohen and not to Engoron's law clerk, whom Trump had been previously sanctioned for criticizing.

The judge asked him if he always refers to Michael Cohen by his name.

Trump's lawyers, Kise and Habba, interjected, saying Trump refers to Cohen using words that are much, much worse than his name.

Engoron said he didn't find the former president credible and fined him $10,000.

Read the full story here.

Engoron has ordered Trump to take the witness stand over his apparent violation of the judge's gag order this morning.

Trump and lawyers from both sides of the case stayed in the judge's courtroom for the beginning of the lunch break, but reporters were directed to leave.

When Trump emerged about 20 minutes later, he refused to say what was discussed. "You mean the conversation? That I can't tell you," he said.

Asked if he violated the gag order and if he was referring to the judge's law clerk when he mentioned the "very partisan" person sitting next to the judge in his comments earlier in the day, Trump said, "No, not at all." He ignored questions about whom he was referring to.

His lawyer said in court that Trump was referring to Cohen. Trump has repeatedly called Cohen a "felon," a "rat" and a "liar," but has no history of calling him "partisan."

The judge questioned whether Trump had violated a gag order barring him from talking about his court staff during the midmorning break, and asked the former president's lawyers why he shouldn't impose "severe sanctions."

During the break, Trump told reporters that Engoron is "a very partisan judge with a person who’s very partisan sitting alongside him, perhaps even much more partisan than he is," which the judge interpreted as a reference to his law clerk.

Engoron noted that Trump had previously "made defamatory, disparaging, untrue comments about my law clerk" on social media, which led to an order barring the former president from talking about the judge's court staff.

The post, which falsely suggested the clerk had a relationship with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, was taken down, but the judge fined Trump $5,000 last week after he was alerted that the post was still on a campaign website.

The post was scrubbed from the site, and the judge warned at the time he would impose sanctions if Trump violated the order again, suggesting imprisonment could be one of the punishments.

"Why should there not be severe sanctions for disobeying a clear court order?" Engoron asked Kise today.

Kise said he'd asked Trump about the remark and was told the former president was referring to Cohen, not the judge's law clerk. The judge was skeptical of the defense, noting the person sitting next to him is the clerk and that there's a barrier between him and Cohen.

"Language sometimes is not clear, but this is clear to me," he said, adding he'd take the matter "under advisement." The trial then resumed, with Cohen going back on the stand.

Speaking outside court, Trump said Cohen has "proven to be a liar."

"He’s a felon, convicted felon for lying, went to jail for lying, and this is their only witness," Trump said. "When you think about it, it’s pretty amazing."

He also called Engoron a "very partisan judge with a person who’s very partisan sitting alongside him, perhaps even much more partisan than he is."

"So we are doing very well," Trump added. "The facts are speaking very loud. And he’s a totally discredited witness," he said of Cohen.

Trump also said of his company’s assets, “We’ve proven that the numbers that they talked about are much higher than they ever imagined.”

“The financial statements that we use were very conservative,” the former president added. “In addition to that, we have a disclaimer, which is go out and do your own due diligence, don’t necessarily believe what you read. In fact, don’t believe what you read, and here are the financials. You can look at them, and you can do whatever you want with it, but do not do anything in terms of considering them without analysis or due diligence.”

Habba asked Cohen if he has "significant animosity" toward his former employer. "Yes, I do," he replied.

Asked if he goes on social media and vents all that animosity, he said, "Not all my animosity," drawing some chuckles from the audience.

Habba then asked if Cohen's career has gone "from a practice in law" to a career of "publicly attacking President Trump."

"Yes," he replied.

Habba questioned Cohen about some of his past praise for the former president, asking if he'd ever said he "worshipped" him and would "take a bullet" for him.

"Yes," Cohen replied.

Asked if he ever said Trump had built an empire, employed thousands of people and "is the best negotiator in history," he said, "I made that statement."

Asked if he remembered tweeting that "only Trump would make America great again," Cohen said, "Not off the top of my head." He was then shown the tweet.

"Yes," he replied.

After Trump attorney Chris Kise interrupted the AG's lawyer, Colleen Flaherty, drawing a protest from her, Engoron told him to "be respectful."

“That group of attorneys is not being respectful,” Kise replied, pointing at the prosecutors. He said he had gone before the Supreme Court and has more than 30 years of experience, adding, “Where I come from, respect is not given, it's earned." 

“I agree that respect isn't mandatory, it's earned” Engoron responded. 

Kise then said, “I have suffered a lot at the hands of the attorney general's office. It's extraordinary.”

“In the courtroom, I haven’t seen it,” Engoron replied, imploring the lawyers to move along.

Cohen was asked if he ever thanked James for acknowledging that he was one of the reasons she started her investigation into Trump and his company.

He turned to James, who was sitting in the front row, and said, "You're welcome. Yes."

James has credited Cohen's 2019 congressional testimony about Trump's business practices as being what sparked her investigation. Asked if he ever thanked her personally for the acknowledgment, he said no, but that he had posted his gratitude on social media.

Habba is now interrogating Cohen about his stated involvement in the preparation of statements of financial condition, and old interviews where he promoted his then-boss's net worth.

She asked about comments he made to CNN in 2015 during which he said that he considered himself to be an expert in real estate and that Trump was easily worth more than $10 billion. That was in the same time frame during which, Cohen testified yesterday, that Trump’s $6 billion-plus net worth was overstated.

Habba asked if he said then that the $10 billion might have been low. "I remember Mr. Trump wanted me to say that," Cohen replied.

"I’m not surprised you say that, Mr. Cohen. You are good at blaming other people," Habba shot back. The lawyer's voice was at times raised during their exchanges.

“I have answered every question that you want. Why are you screaming at me?” Cohen asked.  

Trump's attorneys wasted little time in resuming their attacks on Cohen, with Habba again focusing on Cohen's claim yesterday that he lied under oath during his 2018 guilty plea in federal court by admitting to some charges he was not guilty of.

Habba asked him if he'd committed perjury, language the AG's office objected to. Engoron overruled the objection. "The definition of perjury is lying under oath," the judge said.

The AG's office then argued Trump's lawyers should treat Cohen with more respect and use less showmanship. Habba said "I'm just doing my job," which is to show that Cohen isn't credible.

"There is nothing wrong with calling a liar a liar," Trump lawyer Chris Kise added. "A serial liar is a serial liar."

Speaking to reporters outside the courtroom, Trump said he thinks the trial is “going very well” thus far before characterizing it as “unfair.” He repeated his usual grievances of accusing the Biden DOJ of a political “witch-hunt” amid his presidential campaign and complained about the lack of a jury in the trial.

“It’s a pure political witch hunt,” he said. “But we have the facts on our side, so the company is much stronger than they anticipated, much stronger than anyone really understood. It was a private company, so nobody really understood it.”

“It’s a witch hunt, there’s no question about it,” Trump added.

Cohen, wearing a sport coat and jeans, is now back on the witness stand to answer more questions from Habba.

His former boss, the ex-president, is seated at the defense table and did not turn to look at him when he walked in.

Cohen arrived at the courthouse at 9:29 a.m. ET.

James arrived at the Manhattan courthouse at 9:19 a.m.

In a post on his Truth Social platform this morning, Trump attacked Engoron, James and President Joe Biden.

The former president aired his usual grievances of the lack of a jury in the trial while accusing Engoron and James of attempting election interference during his presidential campaign. He also slammed Biden, calling him a “corrupt” president.

“This unfair political Witch Hunt is causing companies to leave New York at a record pace,” he wrote. “They don’t want this to happen to them!”

Cohen is expected to take the stand for a second day of testimony. Trump said he will be in attendance at court, as well.

In his first day on the stand, Cohen delivered highly anticipated testimony with Trump sitting nearby in the courtroom.

Cohen alleged that Trump directed him and Allen Weisselberg, the former chief financial officer of the Trump Organization, to inflate his assets.

He also discussed Trump's failed bid to buy the Buffalo Bills and his alleged use of inflated financial statements to boost his chances of ownership. Cohen's testimony included remarks about the alleged involvement of Trump's three eldest children in assisting with his financial statements by providing details of their respective projects.

During cross-examination, Habba grilled Cohen about the crimes to which he pleaded guilty in 2018, suggesting that his denial of some of his earlier charges made him an unreliable witness.

Trump took aim at his former attorney while leaving court, blasting his testimony as a disgrace and claiming that Cohen was "totally discredited."