Opinion by Dennis Aftergut
(CNN) — Editor’s note: Dennis Aftergut, a former federal prosecutor, is currently counsel to Lawyers Defending American Democracy, a nonpartisan organization dedicated to preserving the rule of law. The views expressed here are his own. Read more opinion at CNN.
Years ago, as a prosecutor prepping unsavory witnesses — cooperators against drug kingpins, for instance — I would tell them in no uncertain terms: “If you lie or exaggerate the truth on the witness stand, I will come after you for perjury like a runaway truck on a steep incline.”
Unfortunately, Donald Trump probably will not have heard that kind of threat from his attorneys in the days leading up to his momentous court appearance Monday. They don’t have that kind of power over their headstrong client.
In what will be a historic moment for the nation and a hugely consequential one for the president, New York Attorney General Letitia James is set to call the former president to the witness stand in her civil fraud case against him and the Trump Organization.
Sticking to the truth will likely be a tall order for Trump. I suspect that he may also find it challenging to follow the kind of coaching his lawyers often tell their clients such as “Keep your answers short” and “Don’t offer anything, including explanations, unless asked.”
Trump’s lawyers are probably also telling him, “Above all, don’t say anything that could incriminate you. Take the Fifth if you have to, even if in this civil...
A bevy of false claims flooded social media after Wednesday’s fatal shooting of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. Kirk, 31, was gunned down while speaking at an event in Orem, Utah. Two days la...