Eric Trump Has Testy Moment on the Stand

Both of Donald Trump's eldest sons were on the stand Thursday in the financial fraud case in New York against the family business. Eric and Donald Jr., who ran the Trump Organization while their father was president, separately denied firsthand knowledge of inaccurate financial statements about the firm. A judge already has ruled the company fraudulently inflated its value to investors and banks, and the civil trial underway will determine penalties. Some key points from Thursday:

• An overview: Donald Jr. "was calm but defensive, seeking to blame accountants for errors on financial statements," per the New York Times. "His younger brother Eric was more combative—he acknowledged his place at the center of the business, but denied involvement in the financial statements."

• Testy moment: Reuters reports that Eric appeared to grow "flustered" during questioning about his knowledge of, and involvement with, the company's annual financial statements. "We're a major organization, a massive real estate organization," he said, his voice rising. "Yes, I'm pretty sure I understand we have financial statements."
• Recall: Eric said he "did not recall" documents presented by the prosecution, depicting himself as a busy executive. He said he was unaware in particular of one key to the case, his father's statement of financial condition, per the Financial Times. "I don't think I ever saw or worked on the statement of financial condition," he said. And later: "I think I was 26 years old at the time. I don't recall what I knew at the time."
• Lighter moment: Reuters calls Donald Jr.'s testimony "self-deprecating" at times. As he left the witness stand, he told the courtroom sketch artist, "Make me look sexy."
• Father weighs in: While Donald Trump himself is not expected to testify until Monday, he weighed in Thursday on Truth Social. "So sad to see my sons being PERSECUTED in a political Witch Hunt by this out of control, publicity seeking, New York State Judge, on a case that should have NEVER been brought," Trump wrote, per CNN.

(More Eric Trump stories.)