Trump Jr. details history of Trump Organization
Testifying for the defense, former President Trump's eldest son described his father as a real estate "visionary" who "sees the sexiness in a real estate project," creating value for the family business that cannot be captured on paper.
Donald Trump Jr. began his testimony with a quip after Judge Engoron welcomed him back to the stand following his testimony earlier in the month.
"I'd say it's good to be here, but the attorney general would probably sue me for perjury," Trump Jr. joked.
In his testimony, Trump Jr. described the Trump Organization as "a large family business," with Trump and his eldest children at the top and other executives handling many of the details.
"If there were numbers and things, I would rely on them to give me that," Trump Jr. said.
![](https://i.abcnewsfe.com/a/41b806c1-eff6-45cb-b037-dc4ff935a66b/donald-trump-jr-rt-2-thg-231113_1699889604360_hpMain.jpg)
He recounted the history of the Trump Organization, beginning with his great-grandfather who he said built hotels in the Yukon Territories of Canada. His grandfather, Fred Trump, "started working on job sites around Queens, learned the trades" and eventually "created an incredible portfolio, by the time of his passing, of rental apartments in Brooklyn and Queens."
A state attorney jokingly objected that references to the 1800s were outside the statute of limitations -- then more seriously objected to the history lesson's relevance.
"I think it is relevant to get the historical perspective -- I find it interesting," Judge Engoron said in overruling the objection. "Let him go ahead and say how great the Trump Organization is."
Trump Jr. obliged.
"My father learned a lot of the business from him, but had some flair and saw New York City and Manhattan as the ultimate frontier," he said. Speaking of Trump Tower, he said, "I think it would have been one of the first, I think great, ultra-luxury real estate emerging in Manhattan."