Trump targets Jessica Leeds
During the conference, Trump directed his ire at Jessica Leeds, who testified last year about an alleged incident on a New York City-bound flight in the late 1970s. Leeds had claimed that Trump groped her while they were seated together in first class. Trump, however, labeled her account as “impractical” and “made-up,” saying, “She would not have been the chosen one.”
He added, “Think of the impracticality of this. I’m famous, I’m in a plane. People are coming into the plane, and I’m looking at a woman, and I grab her and I start kissing her and making out with her. What are the chances of that happening? And frankly, I know you’re going to say it’s a terrible thing to say, but it couldn’t have happened. It didn’t happen.”
Claims of political motivations
Trump continued to assert that the lawsuits against him are politically motivated. He described the legal cases as part of a “witch hunt” and accused the Department of Justice of interfering in his presidential campaign. “I’m running for president, and I have all these cases all of a sudden come,” Trump declared.
His legal troubles also include a conviction on 34 felony counts related to hush money payments, with a judge expected to decide on a postponement of his sentencing.
Defamation risk
Trump’s repeated denials of Carroll’s accusations may lead to further legal trouble. Carroll’s lawyer, Roberta Kaplan, has warned that continued defamatory remarks could result in additional lawsuits for defamation. “We will monitor his comments and consider further legal action if he persists,” Kaplan said.
Criticism of 1996 verdict
Trump criticized the verdict from the 1996 case, insisting he had never met Carroll and calling the ruling “ridiculous.” He also suggested that Carroll’s allegations were inspired by a “Law and Order” episode and aimed at promoting her memoir.
North Carolina ballot decision
In other political news, a North Carolina appeals court ordered that Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s name be removed from state ballots. The decision came after Kennedy, who had suspended his presidential campaign and endorsed Trump, sought to withdraw from the ballot. This ruling delays the mailing of absentee ballots, impacting the election preparation process.