Judge: If news taints rape-trial jurors, Trump shares blame

A federal judge has rejected Donald Trump's latest attempt to delay his rape trial, saying the former president cannot make public statements to promote pretrial publicity and then claim its prejudicial to him and reason to delay his trial. Judge Lewis A. Kaplan ruled Monday that the civil trial on claims against Trump by a longtime columnist will begin as scheduled on April 25. Trump denies the rape happened. Kaplan rejected arguments by Trump attorney Joe Tacopina that Trump's recent indictment in New York state court had created such a wave of negative publicity that a one-month cooling off period was needed before the rape trial begins.