In defending himself against the many legal actions he is facing, President Trump has long made a habit of altering his legal persona to suit his needs. On Monday, lawyers for the writer E. Jean Carroll accused Mr. Trump of once again using this shape-shifting tactic when he had the Department of Justice abruptly step in and replace his private lawyers in her defamation lawsuit against him. Ms. Carroll has accused Mr. Trump of raping her in a Manhattan department store in the 1990s and then falsely denying it in public statements. Given that, he said, the Justice Department should be allowed to substitute the government for Mr. Trump as the defendant in the case — a move that, under the law, would shield Mr. Trump from being sued for defamation. Mr. Barr later said that the Justice Department’s action came at the request of the White House.

Source: New York Times October 06, 2020 01:37 UTC