Jake Tapper Asks Maggie Haberman To Critique Court Sketch Of Pissed-Off Trump Begin Called a Liar By Judge

CNN anchor Jake Tapper asked New York Times correspondent and CNN analyst Maggie Haberman for her take on a court sketch of former President Donald Trump getting smacked down by the judge in his fraud trial.

There were fireworks Wednesday at the New York fraud trial that culminated with Trump stunning his Secret Service detail by abruptly storming out of court after repeated legal smackdowns by Judge Arthur Engoron that included a $10,000 fine for violating his gag order again.

Earlier in the day, Trump emerged from the courtroom and went on a several-minute rant attacking Cohen, the prosecutor, and the fraud trial itself. Judge Engoron believed Trump had violated the gag order by attacking the judge and “a very partisan person sitting alongside him” — which the judge took correctly as a reference to the clerk Trump had previously attacked.

The judge hauled Trump up to the witness stand and asked him to whom he was referring, and then told Trump he did not find his answer — claiming it was Michael Cohen — to be credible. The judge imposed the fine, and warned it would be worse if Trump violated the order again.

On Wednesday’s edition of The Lead, Tapper injected some humor into a block analyzing the day’s events by asking Haberman for her take on a dramatic sketch by courtroom artist Christine Cornell depicting the moment Judge Engoron “basically called Trump a liar”:

TAPPER: And take a look at the image CNN just obtained of Donald Trump on the stand today. It’s a courtroom sketch. We always like these interesting courtroom sketches. Everybody has their own little interpretation of him. This is Trump when he was being questioned under oath about the gag order.

The judge didn’t find Trump’s explanation as to who he was talking about when he referred to somebody as being more partisan than somebody else. Trump said he was talking about Michael Cohen, but the judge didn’t believe him. He thought he was talking about his clerk and the judge then fine Donald Trump $10,000 for violating it. He basically called Trump a liar, basically insinuated Trump was lying under oath. What’s your reaction to this?

And I don’t know, you’re not an art critic, but what’s your take on the image?

HABERMAN: Unfortunately, I can’t see the image. So I’m sorry that I can’t. My take on what — I don’t have a reverse showing here. But what my take from what happened on the stand is you’re correct that Judge Engoron has not liked how Trump has dealt with this trial, said very bluntly that he doesn’t find him credible. Now, does that mean he doesn’t find them credible in every instance?

I don’t know that that matters. He’s saying it while Trump was under oath. And Trump remember, Jake, is going to have to testify in this trial as a witness in the next two weeks. And so the fact that this is going into his questioning with this level of rancor with the judge, it’s just not helpful to him at a time when he’s trying to save his company.

Watch above via CNN’s The Lead.