Trump news – latest: Trump deposed in New York as E Jean Carroll posts on Truth Social undermine defamation defence

A Truth Social tirade by former President Donald Trump may have blown up his defence case in the defamation suit against him by E Jean Carroll.

Ms Carroll accused him of raping her in a Manhattan department store in the 1990s. His denial sparked her suit against him, though his lawyers maintain that as his denial was made during his presidency he is not personally responsible.

However, repeating the statement now — when he is very much not the president — has essentially reiterated the very offence he is accused of. Legal experts have argued that Ms Carroll could now simply amend her complaint to include the new statement.

Barbara McQuade, formerly Detroit’s top federal prosecutor, told Vice: “She [Carroll] should amend her complaint to include an additional count based on the new statement.”

She explains: “Because Trump is no longer president, this statement was most certainly not made in the scope of his federal employment.”

Mr Trump sits for a deposition today.

New documentary footage of Donald Trump in 2021 from filmmaker Alex Holder has been provided to The New York Times.

Maggie Haberman reports that it includes the former president asking: “Is this a good Jewish character right here?”

Former President Donald J. Trump inquired whether a documentary filmmaker recording an interview with him last year was a “good Jewish character,” described Persians as “very good salesmen” and complained that Israeli Jews favored him more than Jews in the United States, a new clip released by the filmmaker shows.

“In Israel, I’m at like 94 percent, but I got 27, 28 percent,” Mr. Trump says in the video, referring to what he claimed was his approval rating among Israeli Jews versus American Jews.

The video was recorded on May 20, 2021, and was provided to The New York Times by the documentary filmmaker, Alex Holder. It was filmed at an event at Mr. Trump’s golf club in Bedminster, N.J., as he spoke with several people.

Nearly half of sheriffs in a nationwide survey felt that in their home counties, they are the final word on what’s legal and constitutional — no matter what state or federal laws or Supreme Court decisions say.

This growing movement of so-called ‘constitutional sheriffs’ believe they are the final word on the law on issues like Covid, guns, and the 2020 election, Josh Marcus reports.

A special master put in charge of reviewing documents seized by the Justice Department from Donald Trump’s home is growing increasingly frustrated over the lack of progress being made in the case.

CNN reported that Judge Raymond Dearie expressed that frustration on Tuesday during a hearing as the two sides disputed the origin of some of the seized records.

“Where’s the beef? I need some beef,” he was quoted as saying.

Kevin McCarthy is working hard to paint the Democrats as an anti-law enforcement party ahead of this year’s midterms. The strategy may have potential as far as the Republican base is concerned, but as January 6 committee member Adam Kinzinger points, out, it sits awkwardly against the fact that Mr McCarthy has helped rehabilitate Mr Trump after the former president incited his supporters into a violent attack on government officials – and hundreds of police officers.

Saturday Night Live’s cold open showing Donald Trump sitting on a toilet during the January 6 hearings earned a familiar rebuke from the former president.

Mr Trump once again took to his social media platform Truth Social to attack the show’s poor ratings, claim it was on the verge of being cancelled, and suggest creator Lorne Michaels was “angry and exhausted”.

“It was once good, never great, but now like the Late Night Losers who have lost their audience but have no idea why, it is over for SNL – A great thing for America,” he wrote this week.

Read more from Bevan Hurley.

Donald Trump’s Save America PAC is a hyperactive fundraising force, bombarding its subscribers with endless confusingly formatted and oddly worded appeals for donations to this, that or the other Trump-adjacent cause or candidate. But just because you’re the supposed beneficiary doesn’t mean you’ll actually get the money.

Politico’s Sam Stein has looked under the hood of callouts for donations to Arizona Senate candidate Blake Masters, and here’s what he found:

Journalist Bob Woodward, one of the reporters behind the Watergate revealations in the 1970s, is publishing an audiobook that includes recordings of the former president, some of which have been shared with CNN ahead of the book’s release.

The Trump Tapes include eight hours of recorded interviews with Mr Trump, according to CNN.

One conversation on the tapes includes Mr Trump and his son Donald Trump Jr speaking about NDAs.

“I do have non-disclosure deals with,” Mr Trump says. “Corey has one, Hope has one, to do so I won’t even ask one question even as I have,” Mr Trump adds.

“I don’t [have] one [and] I’m in the middle of a book…” Mr Trump Jr states jokingly.

“He’s the one I’m most worried about,” Mr Trump says.

Read more from Gustaf Kilander.

Donald Trump had a frenzied day on Truth Social yesterday, mostly “retruthing” other users’ bizarre and false memes about election fraud and “deep state” conspiracies. But he also had time to fire off a bilious truth or two of his own – including this one attacking Saturday Night Live:

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has responded to footage taken of her during the January 6 riot in which she said she wanted to punch the president in the face if he actually showed up.

Speaking on MSNBC, she stood by her remarks.

“I said I would’ve punched him out, I would’ve gone to jail, and I would’ve been happy to do so for our country,” said Ms Pelosi.

“Would you have done it?” Ms Mitchell pressed the speaker.

Ms Pelosi hesitated for a moment, then answered: “He wouldn’t have had the courage to come to the Hill. He’s all talk.”