Former President Donald Trump knew his body language would matter at his April 4 arraignment.
We know this because, a day before Trump appeared in a New York City courtroom, New York Times reporter and Trump biographer Maggie Haberman was interviewed on the paper’s “The Daily” podcast and said that Trump had discussed with his team of advisers how he should present himself.
“[Trump] has talked to advisers a lot about his so-called ‘perp walk,’ where he is led down a hall to a courtroom: Should he smile or not? How should he handle it?” Haberman said.
Podcast host Michael Barbaro considered what might be running through the former president’s head: “[Should I look] morose? Am I smiling? Am I defiant or am I sad?”
Haberman, a journalist who’s covered Trump so closely that he once called her “his psychiatrist,” said that he would likely be experiencing a mix of emotions at the hearing.