Deliberations begin in Trump defamation trial after ex-president dramatically exits closing argument

Contributing sentiments towards policy:

53% : They're after you, I'm just in the way!"Kaplan was only a few minutes into a closing that lasted more than an hour in Manhattan federal court Friday when Trump suddenly rose from his seat at the defense table and walked toward the exit, pausing to scan the packed courtroom as members of the Secret Service leaped up to follow him out.
48% : Rather than turn away from the allegation, Trump has used the trial to fund-raise for his presidential campaign, telling supporters in a social media post: "They aren't after me.
39% : The final remarks from the lawyers come a day after Trump managed to sneak past a federal judge's rules severely limiting what he could say during his turn on the witness stand, which wound up lasting just 3 minutes.
34% : "Carroll, 80, testified at last year's trial that she had a chance encounter with Trump at a Bergdorf Goodman store that was flirtatious and lighthearted until Trump cornered her in a changing room.
33% : The jury, anonymous, consisting of seven men and two women, is only deciding damages because it has been told to accept as true the findings of another jury that last May awarded Carroll $5 million after concluding Trump sexually abused Carroll in the changing room of a luxury Manhattan department store.
30% : "She said something that I considered to be a false accusation," Trump said, later adding: "I just wanted to defend myself, my family and, frankly, the presidency."
29% : "Habba told jurors that Carroll's once-thriving career was in a slump and her pay as a gossip columnist at Elle magazine had been reduced to $60,000 when she chose to reveal her claims against Trump, winning a level of fame and riches she hadn't seen before.
25% : Habba showed the jury a video in which Trump said the jury's verdict last year was "a disgrace" and "a continuation of the greatest witch hunt of all time.""You know why he has not wavered?"
25% : Roberta Kaplan warned jurors not to adopt the defense argument that Carroll would not face online threats if she had chosen not to make claims against Trump.
24% : Her claim that Trump raped her was rejected by last year's jury, though it found she was sexually abused.
22% : Trump's attorney, Alina Habba, said Trump told the truth when he refuted her claims.
22% : "Donald Trump is not the victim here," she said.
22% : Trump, the Republican frontrunner in this year's presidential election, has long regretted his decision not to testify at that trial, blaming his lawyers for bad advice.
20% : The current jury is deciding what damages, if any, Trump owes for two statements he made in June 2019 while he was president after Carroll made her accusation.
20% : "Later, Trump returned to the courtroom to hear Habba argue that he should not be made to pay Carroll for comments that set off hate messages from strangers.
18% : Trump, who was not required to attend the civil lawsuit proceedings, had appeared agitated all morning, vigorously shaking his head as Carroll's attorney branded him a liar who had incited a "social media mob" to attack her client.
17% : Then, she said an "unusually high punitive award" was also necessary against a man worth billions of dollars "to have any hope of stopping Donald Trump.
16% : She said Carroll's association with Trump had given her the fame she craved and that death threats she received cannot be blamed on Trump's remarks.
16% : "This case is about punishing Donald Trump for what he's done and what he continues to do," Roberta Kaplan continued.
15% : On Thursday, Trump testified that he stood "100%" behind comments he made in an October 2002 deposition in which he denied Carroll's accusations, calling her "sick" and a "whack job.

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