Former President Donald Trump fired off more than 30 posts in 40 minutes targeting E. Jean Carroll as his second defamation trial got underway Tuesday as the two appeared in the same room together for the first time in years, according to CNN. Trump lobbed a flurry of attacks at Carroll and the federal judge presiding over the ex-columnist's defamation trial against the former president. "I am waiting to get into the courtroom for the Carroll proceedings, but the bizarre advantage of still being outside is learning Trump has yet again defamed Carroll on Truth Social," MSNBC legal analyst Lisa Rubin reported.
In one post, which he later reposted, Trump wrote, "Can you believe I have to defend myself against this woman’s fake story?!” over a video clip of Carroll. He also authored several posts raging at the writer and U.S. District Court Judge Lewis Kaplan, who last week applied restrictions on what Trump and his lawyers could discuss during the trial, dubbing Carroll's lawsuit "attempted extortion" in one and in others accusing Kaplan of hating him and calling on the judge to "put this whole corrupt, Crooked Joe Biden-directed Election Interference attack on me immediately to rest." Trump also shared more than a dozen screenshots of what appear to be posts about sex from Carroll's social media accounts.
"Trump's Truth Social account is mass attacking E. Jean Carroll while he sits (phoneless) in court and prospective jurors are beginning to gather," Politico's Kyle Cheney wrote on X, formerly Twitter, citing Politico reporter Erica Orden. "We'll see what, if anything, Judge Kaplan has to say about this..." Orden added. Last Wednesday, Kaplan barred Trump and his team from — among other matters — denying he sexually abused Carroll, holding that "the material facts concerning the alleged sexual assault already have been determined, and this trial will not be a ‘do over’ of the previous trial."
