Benzinga - by Shanthi Rexaline, Benzinga Editor.
Donald Trump’s niece Mary Trump weighed in on her uncle’s New York civil fraud case trial and the potential stances of her cousins when they take the stand at the trial.
What Happened: Testifying at the trial on Wednesday, Donald Trump Jr, the eldest son of the former and an executive vice president at the Trump Organization, said he didn't recall ever working on any of the financial statements and had “no specific knowledge” of them.
Mary Trump’s guest Molly Jong-Fast, a political commentator, said in the interview that was aired on Wednesday, “Don Jr….is one of those people who doesn’t know he’s not smart. So he just talks all the time.”
Speaking of her cousin, Mary Trump said Donald Trump Jr. is so desperate to get somebody’s attention and approval that he’ll do whatever he feels he needs to do.
Commenting on the New York fraud trial, Jong-Fast said if the case is not dismissed on appeal, it would signal the end of Donald Trump’s family business in New York. “He’ll have to sell everything that’s owned by the New York-based entity, including Mar-a-Lago. So this will be humongous for him,” she said.
Tall Order For Trump’s Children: Mary Trump said her cousins face a daunting task as they testify in the case and that her eldest cousin Donald Trump Jr. is the least equipped to do this.
“They’re going to have to walk a very thin line between obfuscating in a way that’s not perjury and appeasing their father’s ego so that he doesn’t throw them under the bus when he testifies,” she said.
Donald Trump would end up doing it [throwing them under the bus], no matter what his adult children do, Mary Trump said. But Ivanka Trump’s “just going to tell the truth and throw him under the bus,” she said, adding that she was legitimately wealthy, unlike the rest.
Jong-Fast averred with her guest. “You could see her [Ivanka Trump] just going up there saying whatever she wants to say, daddy protecting her, and ultimately her being the linchpin,” she said. “I do think she ends up being the most unscathed.”
Mary Trump said her uncle could throw Ivanka Trump under the bus if needed because he doesn’t care about anybody. “But I also do find it very interesting and harder or trickier for Donald that she’s now testifying after he does,” she added.
Judge Arthur Engoron, who is trying the case, said on Monday that Ivanka Trump will testify on Nov. 8, instead of Friday, to allow sufficient time for her to be questioned.
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