Trump Makes Grandiose Claims About Averting a ‘Nuclear Holocaust’ in Newly Released Deposition Video

In response to requests from media outlets under New York's Freedom of Information Law, Attorney General Letitia James' office released a seven-hour video on Friday. The footage of former president Donald Trump's pre-trial deposition showcased his meeting with the state attorney general in private in April 2023 at her Manhattan office. A transcript of the video that CBS News was able to obtain showed Trump making sworn claims about 'saving millions of lives' and averting a 'nuclear holocaust' while in office.

"I was very busy. I consider this the most important job in the world, saving millions of lives. I think you would've had a nuclear holocaust if I didn't deal with North Korea. I think you would've had a nuclear war if I weren't elected. And I think you might have a nuclear war now if you want to know the truth," Trump said. 

Kevin Wallace, the state attorney, can then be heard in the taped video asking the GOP frontrunner about his business after informing him he doesn't want to spend 'seven hours on nuclear war.' "I can hardly think of anything," Trump retorted, going on his well-known rampage to defend his holdings. 

James filed a lawsuit in 2022 alleging that Trump, his two adult sons, and their top aides had cheated financial institutions over ten years by providing exaggerated estimates of his assets and net worth.  As per The Independent, in his testimony, Trump claimed that the financial documents at the heart of the case were 'the opposite' of what the complaint alleged and that he failed to disclose an unreported 'brand value' in connection with his allegedly inflated property prices. “I became president because of my brand value. I sell books at incredible levels,” he said in November.

As reported by ABC News, with his arms crossed, a bewildered Trump bemoaned the pre-trial interrogation when the state attorney was grilling him by saying that, following decades of success in creating a real estate company that was now in jeopardy due to the legal dispute, he was being made to 'justify myself to you.'

The Republican leader could be seen grinning and puckering his lips in the footage when the Democratic Attorney General greeted him and declared that she is 'committed to a fair and impartial legal process.' The deposition video from April that was just made public matches his behavior during the trial. Trump spoke in court on November 6, and during the case's closing arguments on January 11, when he disobeyed the judge and delivered a six-minute tirade following his attorneys' statements; cameras were not allowed in the room.

In August 2022, during an earlier deposition in the case, Trump repeatedly refused to answer questions, citing his Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination. He claimed to have done this because he was positive that his responses would serve as the foundation for legal action.