Donald Trump was slapped with $83.3 million in damages in a Manhattan defamation case brought by writer E. Jean Carroll. In response, former Department of Justice (DOJ) attorney Andrew Weissmann delved into the implications of the verdict on Friday.
What Happened: In order for Carroll to receive the damages, she has to await Trump’s appeal, said Weismann in an interview with MSNBC.
“That’s part of our process where you’re entitled to appeal and be heard, and it doesn’t matter whether you’re Donald Trump or anyone else, that is part of the rule of law that we are seeing being upheld here,” he said.
“This is really a bad sign for Donald Trump,” the DOJ veteran continued, referring to the former president’s multitude of legal challenges. “His whole goal is to denigrate the rule of law, to denigrate the judicial system, the court system, because that is where he is facing accountability,” he said.
“He has to worry about the what is happening in these cases,” he added.
Weissmann noted that Trump made a plea for jury nullification — when jurors are convinced of a defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt but choose to exercise their power to acquit — on Friday.
“Well, that did not happen. It did not happen here,” Weissmann pointed out.
The ex-DOJ attorney also noted that another jury has found “beyond reasonable doubt” that the Trump Organization is “criminally liable” for a “multi-year tax scheme,” referring to the New York civil fraud case overseen by Judge Arthur Engoron.
“The Judge Engoron decision that we’re waiting for is going to be a damage amount,” Weissmann said.
“So you’re seeing in so many ways the courts really standing up,” he added.
Referring to the verdict in the defamation lawsuit, Weissmann said, “You’re seeing people really embodying what is the best in America, which is that the rule of law has to triumph and that people were going to reject this idea of we’re going to … have a cult where we just don’t hold you to the same standard any of the rest of us are held to.”
Why It’s Important: Despite the former president’s legal troubles, opinion polls show that Trump has a strong lead over fellow Republicans in the GOP primary race. The former president also fared better than President Joe Biden in most national polls.
The sole obstacle preventing Trump from a potential second term is a pending U.S. Supreme Court case determining his eligibility for the ballots due to his involvement in the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol Hill riots.
Trump notched two early victories in the Iowa and New Hampshire Republican primaries. Two of his main rivals, namely Vivek Ramaswamy and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis ended their campaigns, leaving former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley as Trump’s sole credible challenger. The next state to hold primaries is South Carolina on Feb. 24.
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