A courtroom sketch of former President Donald Trump’s civil fraud trial has generated a social media storm.
New York Attorney General Letitia James has accused Trump of inflating the worth of his enterprises and properties. Trump has said he did nothing wrong and called the prosecution a “political witch hunt.”
One sketch from the closing arguments on Thursday showing Trump and his attorney Alina Habba triggered an intense reaction online.
Newsweek offered a description of the unflattering sketch: “Habba was shown with … overgrown lips, a bulging chin and with a sinking indent in her cheek.”
Trump was portrayed in the drawing with “exaggerated features including hawkish eyes and looking ahead with a toothless gape,” Newsweek reported.
Trending:
NEW: Court sketches from the closing arguments in Donald Trump’s civil fraud trial in NYC
Credit: Christine Cornell pic.twitter.com/nkaONTdliU
— MSNBC (@MSNBC) January 11, 2024
Needless to say, social media users who hate Trump and Habba went to town.
One said the sketch artist “captured the real Donald Trump — inside and out,” while another compared Habba to a cartoon character.
If there’s ever going to be a Presidential portrait of Donald Trump in the Whitehouse, the commission needs to hire this courtroom sketch artist.
They captured the real Donald Trump — inside and out. pic.twitter.com/TUxrhOEWUH
— Christopher Webb (@cwebbonline) January 12, 2024
Wow Habba really does look like a character from Looney tunes
— Leaffan’76NC🇨🇦🇺🇸🇮🇹 (@flakes391) January 11, 2024
In the courtroom on Thursday, Judge Arthur Engoron relented and allowed Trump to speak after his lawyers made their closing arguments. Engoron had previously banned the former president from speaking.
At one point in his comments, Trump murmured to Engoron, “I know you have your agenda,” leading the judge to tell one of Trump’s attorneys to “control your client.”
“This case goes outside of just the facts,” Trump said. “The facts are that the financial statements were perfect. The banks were as happy as can be.”
“This is not a consumer fraud. What happened here, sir, is a fraud on me,” he told Engoron. “We have a situation where I’m an innocent man. … I’ve been persecuted.”
