Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump gestures to supporters at a campaign rally at the Forum River Center in Rome, Georgia, the United States, on March 9, 2024.
Alyssa Pointer | Reuters
Donald Trump on Monday again denied rape and defamation accusations against him by author E. Jean Carroll, even as he faces nearly $90 million in civil penalties for similar denials.
The Republican presidential candidate claimed on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” that the numerous convictions against him in New York would prompt companies to leave the state.
Trump said these were “the most ridiculous decisions, including by Ms. Bergdorf Goodman, who I have never met.”
“I don’t know who she is, except for one thing, I’m being sued,” he said. “That’s when I was like, ‘Wow, that’s crazy, what is this.'”
“I was charged, I was falsely accused, and I had to pay $91 million in bail on false charges,” Trump added.
He was referring to Carroll, who in 2019 first publicly accused the then-president of raping her in a dressing room at the Bergdorf Goodman department store in Manhattan in the mid-1990s.Carol Sues Trump in New York Federal Court for Defamation of Her be rejected Rape accusations and accusations that she was trying to sell books.
In 2022, Carroll sued Trump for the second time, accusing him of assault and defamation related to the alleged rape, but Trump denied it after leaving the White House.
Trump also referred to Carroll as “Ms. Bergdorf Goodman” in his statement on October 12, 2022.
In May last year, a federal civil jury found Trump liable for sexual abuse and defamation, awarding Carroll $5 million in damages.
In January, another federal civil jury in Manhattan ordered Trump to pay $83.3 million for defaming Carroll for comments he made while he was president.
Trump is appealing both convictions. On Friday, he posted a $91.6 million bond to secure the latest verdict while he appeals the jury’s verdict.
In Carroll’s other case, Trump has posted a $5.6 million bond pending an appeal.
Trump claimed in an interview with CNBC on Monday that his legal battles in New York, including a civil business fraud case, resulted in $464 million The total amount of penalties and interest will cause the company to leave New York.
“People don’t move to New York because they cause trouble for me,” he said.
Carroll’s attorney and Trump’s spokesperson did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment on the former president’s latest remarks about the writer.
Trump also accused Carroll of making “false accusations” at Saturday’s rally.
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