President Donald Trump’s son Eric Trump on Monday answered questions under oath from New York state investigators probing the Trump Organization’s business practices, according to reports.
Eric Trump, who serves as the Trump Organization’s executive vice president, agreed on Sept. 17 to undergo questioning in connection with the probe. His attorney proposed four dates, beginning on Nov. 19—some two weeks after the presidential election, arguing that his questioning should take place after the election due to his “extreme” travel commitments and to avoid “any appearance of politicizing the investigatory process.”
James sought a judicial order to enforce the subpoena after Eric Trump’s attorneys canceled a July interview with investigators, with a judge giving the president’s son until Wednesday to comply.
The president earlier accused New York’s Democrat Gov. Andrew Cuomo of using James and her office “as a bludgeoning tool” to target his businesses for political purposes.
“Now Cuomo’s A.G. is harassing all of my New York businesses in search of anything at all they can find to make me look as bad as possible,” Trump wrote on Twitter. “So, on top of ridiculously high taxes, my children and companies are spending a fortune on lawyers,” Trump complained.
James began her probe into the Trump Organization’s business dealings in March 2019 after the president’s former personal lawyer Michael Cohen told Congress that the president repeatedly inflated the value of his assets to obtain more favorable terms for loans and insurance coverage.
A spokesperson for the Trump Organization denied the allegations to The Epoch Times in an emailed statement last month, saying that the company “has done nothing wrong.”
“This is simply a discovery dispute over documents and the like. The Trump Organization has done nothing wrong and, as the motion papers clearly state, the NYAG has made no determination that anything was improper or that any action is forthcoming,” the statement said.
“While we have tried to cooperate in good faith with the investigation at every turn, the NYAG’s continued harassment of the company as we approach the election (and filing of this motion on the first day of the Republican National Convention) once again confirms that this investigation is all about politics.”
The Trump Organization added that it will respond to the motion as appropriate.
Four Trump Organization properties are being probed, including the Seven Spring Estate in Westchester County, New York; 40 Wall Street in Manhattan; the Trump International Hotel and Tower Chicago, and Trump National Golf Club in Los Angeles.
