Trump warned: Fraud trial not a political rally

DONALD Trump was warned his civil fraud trial was "not a political rally" by a frustrated judge who chided him for long-winded answers.

- Paul Withers

Judge Arthur Engoron repeatedly told the former US president to keep his submissions concise as Trump testified in a lawsuit accusing him of dramatically inflating his net worth.

The judge said: "We don't have time to waste. We have one day to do this."

And Mr Engoron, who determined in a ruling earlier that Trump committed fraud for years while building his real estate empire, cautioned that he was prepared to draw "negative inferences" against the former president if he failed to rein in his waffling.

Tensions between Mr Engoron and Trump, which were already on display last month when the judge fined him $10,000 for incendiary outside-of-court comments, were evident when was repeatedly the ex-president scolded about the length and content of his answers.

"Mr Kise, can you control your client?," Mr Engoron asked Trump's lawyer Christopher Kise, who responded that Trump was entitled to latitude as a former president.