“Under the advice of my attorney and for all of the above reasons, I declined to answer questions about the rights and privileges granted to all citizens by the United States Constitution,” Trump said in a statement.
Trump was to be impeached by lawyers from New York Attorney General Letitia James’ office as part of a more than three-year civil investigation into whether the Trump Organization defrauded lenders, insurers and tax authorities by providing – misleading financial statements.
Trump said in a post on Truth Social Wednesday morning that he would “see” James “for a continuation of the biggest witch hunt in American history! My great company, and myself, are under attack from all sides. Banana Republic!”
Trump was spotted leaving Trump Tower in New York City on Wednesday morning, and his motorcade arrived at the New York Attorney General’s office shortly after.
The planned deposition comes during an extraordinary legal week for the former president. On Monday, the FBI executed a search warrant at Mar-a-Lago, his primary residence in Florida, in connection with an investigation into the handling of classified documents. On Tuesday, a federal appeals court denied his long-running effort to block a House committee from obtaining his tax returns.
Some Trump advisers had advocated for the former president to answer questions since he previously testified about his financial statements under oath, while others warned him not to provide any answers because of the potential legal jeopardy he could face, they say CNN people familiar with the matter. The Manhattan district attorney has a separate criminal investigation underway into the Trump Organization.
Another consideration that had been discussed, the people familiar with the matter said, is the political implications of not answering the questions, as Trump is expected to announce that he will run for president in 2024. While campaigning in 2016, Trump suggested that not answering the questions was a sign of guilt. At a campaign stop in Iowa in 2016, Trump said, “If you’re innocent, why do you accept the Fifth Amendment?”
In his statement Wednesday, Trump said, “Now I know the answer to that question,” and denounced the James investigation. The former president and the Trump Organization have previously denied any wrongdoing.
“When your family, your company, and everyone in your orbit has become the target of a baseless, politically motivated witch hunt backed by lawyers, prosecutors, and the news media false, you have no choice,” the former president declared.
The Fifth Amendment guarantees that an individual cannot be compelled by the government to provide information that could incriminate himself. When a person refuses to answer a question by “taking the fifth,” he invokes this right. It is not an admission of guilt.
“No person … shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself,” the Fifth Amendment states.
Investigation and previous statements
In January, James’ office said it found “significant” evidence that the Trump Organization used false or misleading asset valuations in its financial statements to obtain loans, insurance and tax benefits. The attorney general’s civil investigation is nearing completion, and a decision on an enforcement action may come soon.
The standoff follows Trump’s failed attempt to block subpoenas for statements by him and his son, Donald Trump Jr. and Ivanka Trump.
Ivanka Trump’s deposition took place last week and Trump Jr. took his deposition in late July, people familiar with the matter said.
Trump Jr., who runs the Trump Organization with his brother Eric Trump, and Ivanka Trump did not assert their Fifth Amendment rights and answer the state’s questions, the people said. It is not clear what they were specifically asked or what they said.
His decision breaks with Eric Trump and former Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg, who asserted their Fifth Amendment rights more than 500 times when they were impeached in 2020.
Trump has testified under oath in civil cases for the past few decades and has also been impeached since leaving office. Last year, he provided videotaped testimony for a lawsuit involving an assault outside Trump Tower. The case is scheduled to go to trial in the fall. Trump has denied any wrongdoing.
Questions about Trump’s net worth
Trump has been questioned about the accuracy of his net worth and financial statements in previous lawsuits, which some advisers say is one reason he would have to answer questions in the current investigation.
In a 2007 deposition In a defamation lawsuit, Trump once said he calculated his net worth, to some extent, on his “feelings” and put the “best spin” on some of the assets. “I think everybody” exaggerates the value of their properties, he declared, adding, “Who wouldn’t?”
Did it inflate values? “Not beyond reason,” Trump said.
In the past, Trump has tried to pin responsibility for his valuation decisions on Weisselberg, while at the same time, documents and depositions appear to show that while Trump claimed he left those valuation decisions to others , was also deeply involved in management. your business
Trump said in the 2007 deposition that the only person he dealt with in preparing the financial statements was Weisselberg.
“I would give my opinion,” Trump said in the statement. “We’ll talk about it,” he said, adding that “ultimately” and “predominantly” it was Weisselberg who came up with the final values, which Trump said he considered “conservative.”
When asked specifically about year-over-year stock changes, Trump had explanations ready.
During the deposition, Trump was questioned about the family compound in Westchester County, New York, called Seven Springs, where its value nearly doubled in a year, from $80 million in 2005 to $150 million in 2006
“The property was very undervalued, in my opinion, back then and it became a lot, it’s only gone up,” Trump said.
He was asked if he had any basis for this view, other than his own opinion.
“I don’t think so, no,” he said.
In addition to Weisselberg, two others involved in preparing the financial statements, Trump Organization controller Jeff McConney and Donald Bender, an outside accountant for the real estate firm, have been interviewed by the attorney general’s office and the U.S. attorney’s office. district of Manhattan.
Trump’s lawyers are likely to argue that the financial statements were not audited, so anyone relying on them would be on notice. Financial statements reviewed by CNN show they have numerous disclosures that indicate they do not conform to generally accepted accounting principles. Also, none of the lenders lost money on the transactions, which could make it harder to claim they were defrauded or misled.
The valuations underlying the property values were in many cases provided by Trump’s longtime appraiser, Cushman & Wakefield, which is also under investigation. Cushman, who cut ties with Trump after the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021, has denied any wrongdoing and is keeping his job.
Legal risks for Trump
The statements pose significant legal risks for the Trumps.
If Trump is sued by James and the case goes to trial, the jury could draw an “adverse inference” against him for not answering questions, which could lead to a higher sentence against him if he is found liable. If you answer the questions, you could open the door to possible civil and criminal liability.
The criminal investigation, led by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, has slowed but not stopped. Earlier this year, Bragg would not allow prosecutors to present evidence to a state grand jury after raising concerns about the strength of the case, CNN reported. A special grand jury hearing in the case expired in April, but a new one could be set in the future.
Bragg told CNN in an interview in April: “Anytime you have a parallel civil and criminal investigation, if there are witnesses in that proceeding, obviously we’re going to look at that.”
This story has been updated with additional news.
Vogue’s Ariane and CNN’s Joan Biskupic contributed to this report.
