Former President Donald Trump was in good spirits as he left the courtroom Tuesday after his legal team rested its case in his New York criminal trial.
"Feel very good," Trump said as he spoke to reporters outside of the Manhattan courtroom in a video posted on his Truth Social account. "I think we have a great case [that] was put on. There is no crime. In fact, I just got almost every review that's been done of the case so far. As they say, there's no crime. It should never have been brought. It should be dismissed before you have a verdict.
"We have a judge [Juan Merchan] that is extremely, let's say, complicated. But let's also say conflicted. He's complicated and conflicted."
Trump's legal team motioned for Merchan to recuse himself from the case because his daughter Loren Merchan is president of Authentic Campaigns, a Chicago-based progressive political consulting firm whose top clients include Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., and the Senate Majority PAC, a major Democratic Party fundraiser. Merchan denied the motion and remained on the case.
"It's a frustrating situation," Trump said. "Nobody has ever seen anything quite like it."
Trump's attorneys and prosecutors from Democrat Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's office were set to meet later Tuesday with Merchan to hash out the specifics of the legal instructions – including analysis on key elements of election law – that will be given to the jury before they decide Trump's fate. Closing arguments are expected to begin next week.
"We have a situation where we have no crime and these next couple of hours are very important because the judge can try to manufacture one where it goes from a misdemeanor, which doesn't exist because of the statute of limitations … and they try to bring it into a felony, but you can't do it because they haven't proved it," Trump said.
"You're going to read all of these experts – you know the ones; I don't have to go over their names again – they're all experts, legal scholars, talented people, very smart people, and there is no crime. They're going to try to devise one right now, and the judge, he'll help them out because the judge has been very helpful to the other side. That should never be in our country."