Trump's defense concludes its case in New York fraud trial
CBSN
Lawyers for former President Donald Trump ended a month-long procession of more than a dozen witnesses Tuesday with testimony from a feisty, combative accounting professor named Eli Bartov, who proclaimed that New York Attorney General Letitia James' case against Trump is "absurd."
Bartov's appearance marked the end of the two sides' core cases in the civil fraud trial. The state is expected to call two brief rebuttal witnesses before the case shifts to a new phase. Closing arguments are scheduled to begin on Jan. 11, and the judge plans to issue his ruling a few weeks later.
The trial has been a lengthy, tense standoff between Trump and James, who were often in the room as their lawyers clashed. From the beginning, they took turns lashing out at each other to the media gathered outside.
President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden were honored at a state dinner in Paris at the Presidential Elysee Palace on Saturday, hosted by French President Emmanuel Macron and first lady Brigitte Macron marking the 80th anniversary of D-Day two days prior and the strength of the countries' long alliance.
President Joe Biden said France was America's "first friend" at its founding and is one of its closest allies more than two centuries later as he was honored with a state visit Saturday by French President Emmanuel Macron aimed at showing off their partnership on global security issues and easing past trade tensions.
The Consumer Federal Protection Bureau last week launched an inquiry into what the agency is calling "junk fees in mortgage closing costs." These additional fees, involving home appraisal, title insurance and other services, have spiked in recent years and can add thousands of dollars to the final cost of buying a home.
Retired Maj. Gen. William Anders, the former Apollo 8 astronaut who took the iconic "Earthrise" photo showing the planet as a shadowed blue marble from space in 1968, was killed Friday when the plane he was piloting alone plummeted into the waters off the San Juan Islands in Washington state. He was 90.