Legal expert predicts Trump's upcoming deposition could be difficult: 'Lawyers have all day'
Former FBI agents Peter Strzok and Lisa Page have filed lawsuits against the U.S government after being targeted by then-President Donald Trump. It was reported last week that the Justice Department couldn't block the testimony of Trump, despite their best efforts.
Speaking about it on Sunday, former federal prosecutor Barb McQuade, co-host of the "Sisters in Law" podcast, explained that probably the worst ruling for the DOJ because Trump has a tendency to ramble about anything and everything.
Political analyst Jonathan Alter cited the recent report that Trump was trying to get the IRS to investigate Strzok and Page, which is illegal.
"It is another example of him using the powers of the presidency to strike out his perceived enemies," explained NBC's national security editor David Rohde. "Siccing the IRS on people who you dislike or suspect is what Richard Nixon did. It was made illegal because the federal government, whether the IRS, Justice Department, or FBI should not be used to punish the president's perceived enemy or to protect his friend. This is the same pattern he has talked about if he wins reelection taking tighter control of the Justice Department and the FBI and pulling special counsel to look at his enemies."
These are all things that lawyers could ask Trump about in the lawsuit from the two FBI agents.
"I imagine that is a motive lawyers would want to ask him about," McQuade said. "It is dangerous ground for him to be in a deposition. To the extent that he has damaging information, he is obligated to share it truthfully. If he fails to share it truthfully, he could be in trouble for perjury. He has often had difficulty answering questions in a straightforward matter. His method of speaking has been described by former FBI director James Comey as 'word salad.' But in a deposition, you can't get away with that. Lawyers have all day. There is no worry about whether the viewers will get bored watching. They will ask all day, pin him down and demand he answer the question. It is a peerless situation for him to be in to answer these questions under oath."
See the full panel discussion below or at the link here.
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