NEW YORK (AP) 鈥 In newly public testimony, Donald Trump boasts about building a multibillion-dollar brand and saving 鈥渕illions of lives鈥 as president.
He spars with the New York attorney general suing him for fraud, telling Letitia James 鈥渢he whole case is crazy鈥 and accusing her staff of trying to trip him up like TV lawyer Perry Mason did to witnesses.
Trump gave seven hours of sworn testimony in April as , which accused the Republican and his company of defrauding banks, insurers and others with annual financial statements that inflated the value of assets and boosted his net worth by more than $2 billion in some years.
Trump's lawyers posted a transcript of his deposition in a , ahead of a possible October trial.
Here are the highlights:
A 鈥楾ERRIBLE THING鈥
Trump decried James' lawsuit as a 鈥渢errible thing," telling her and her staff "you don鈥檛 have a case."
He insisted the banks she alleges were snookered with lofty valuations suffered no harm, got paid in his deals and 鈥渢o this day have no complaints.鈥
鈥淒o you know the banks made a lot of money?鈥 Trump asked. "Do you know I don鈥檛 believe I ever got even a default notice and, even during COVID, the banks were all paid. And yet you鈥檙e suing on behalf of banks, I guess. It鈥檚 crazy. The whole case is crazy.鈥
Banks 鈥渨ant to do business with me because I鈥檓 rich,鈥 Trump told James. 鈥淏ut, you know what, they鈥檙e petrified to do business because of you.鈥
Trump complained New York authorities 鈥渟pend all their time investigating me, instead of stopping violent crime in the streets."
He said they'd put his recently jailed 鈥渢hrough hell and back鈥 for dodging taxes on .
鈥淣ow I have to come and justify myself to you,鈥 Trump groused.
DON'T TAKE MY WORD FOR IT
Trump said he never felt his financial statements "would be taken very seriously,鈥 and that people who did business with him were given ample warning not to trust them.
Trump described the statements as 鈥渁 fairly good compilation of properties鈥 rather than a true representation of their value. Some numbers, he noted, were 鈥済uesstimates."
Trump claimed the statements were mainly for his use, though he conceded financial institutions sometimes asked for them.
Even then, he insisted it didn鈥檛 matter legally if they were accurate or not, because they came with a disclaimer.
鈥淚 have a clause in there that says, 鈥楧on鈥檛 believe the statement. Go out and do your own work,鈥 Trump testified. "You鈥檙e supposed to pay no credence to what we say whatsoever.鈥
WHAT鈥橲 IN A NAME? $10 BILLION
Trump estimated that his 鈥渂rand鈥 alone is worth 鈥渕aybe $10 billion.鈥
He called it 鈥渢he most valuable asset I have鈥 and attributed his political success to the ubiquity of his name and persona.
鈥淚 became president because of the brand, OK,鈥 Trump said. 鈥淚 became president. I think it鈥檚 the hottest brand in the world.鈥
鈥楳OST IMPORTANT JOB IN THE WORLD鈥
After Trump was elected, he put the Trump Organization into a trust overseen by his eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., and longtime finance chief, Weisselberg.
Trump claimed he did so not because it was required but because he wanted to be a 鈥渓egitimate president鈥 and avoid appearance of a conflict of interest.
Plus, Trump said, he was busy solving the world's problems 鈥 like preventing North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un from .
鈥淚 considered this the most important job in the world, saving millions of lives,鈥 Trump testified. 鈥淚 think you would have nuclear holocaust if I didn鈥檛 deal with North Korea. I think you would have a nuclear war, if I weren鈥檛 elected. And I think you might have a nuclear war now, if you want to know the truth.鈥
NOW WE'RE TALKING
Trump's often garrulous testimony was a 180-degree turn from the approach he took when James summoned him for questioning in August 2022 鈥 before her lawsuit or any of the four criminal cases against him were filed.
At that first deposition, Trump against self-incrimination and refused to answer questions more than 400 times. Trump said he did so because he was certain politically motivated prosecutors would use his answers as a basis for criminal charges.
By April, and responded to even simple questions at such length that his interrogator, James' deputy Kevin Wallace, suggested he was trying to run out the clock.
鈥淐hris, we鈥檙e going to be here until midnight if your client answers every question with an eight-minute speech,鈥 he said to one of Trump鈥檚 lawyers, Christopher Kise.
Trump, though, seemed aware there was a risk in going on and on.
In the middle of one of his protracted answers, expounding on the greatness of one of his golf courses, Trump said: 鈥淵ou are going to let me go on, hoping that I make a mistake. And that鈥檚 OK. That鈥檚 the way it is. Perry Mason. Perry Mason.鈥
OBSTRUCTED VIEW
Trump testified at the attorney general's Manhattan office, across the street from 40 Wall Street 鈥 a skyscraper labeled 鈥淭he Trump Building鈥 in big, gold letters.
Asked how the building was doing, financially, Trump answered: 鈥淕ood. It鈥檚 right here. Would you like to see it?鈥
鈥淚 don鈥檛 think we鈥檙e allowed to open the windows,鈥 Wallace said.
鈥淥pen the curtain," Trump suggested.
鈥淣o,鈥 Wallace said.
鈥淥pen the curtain, go ahead,鈥 Trump said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 right here. I just looked out the window.鈥
鈥淐an鈥檛 open it?鈥 Trump lawyer Clifford Robert asked, after a beat.
鈥淚 wouldn鈥檛,鈥 Wallace said.
鈥楤EAUTIFUL鈥 AND 鈥橧NCREDIBLE'
Trump showed off his knack for superlatives, uttering the words 鈥渂eautiful鈥 and 鈥渋ncredible鈥 15 times each and 鈥減henomenal鈥 six times as he described his properties.
Trump called his Turnberry, Scotland, golf course 鈥渙ne of the most iconic places in the world,鈥 and the renovated villas at his Doral golf resort near Miami 鈥渢he most beautiful rooms you鈥檝e ever seen.鈥
Trump described his north of New York City as 鈥渢he greatest house in New York State.鈥
His golf courses in Aberdeen, Scotland? 鈥淩eally incredible.鈥 Jupiter, Florida? 鈥淎n incredible facility.鈥 Just outside Los Angeles? 鈥淎n incredible property 鈥 an unbelievable property ... a phenomenal property that fronts on the ocean.鈥
鈥淚 don鈥檛 want to sell any of them,鈥 Trump testified. 鈥淏ut if I ever sold them 鈥 if I ever put some of these things up for sale 鈥 I would get numbers that were staggering."
He said he could get $1.5 billion for his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida and maybe $2.5 billion for Doral.
Trump suggested he could get 鈥渁 fortune鈥 from the Saudi Arabia-backed LIV golf league for the Turnberry course, a former British Open site.
鈥淭here would be people that would do anything to own Doral. There are people that would do anything to own Turnberry or Mar-a-Lago or ... Trump Tower or 40 Wall Street.鈥
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Associated Press reporters Jennifer Peltz and David B. Caruso contributed to this report.
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