FUNDAMENTALLY UNPRECEDENTED NATURE OF THE CRIMINAL CHARGES HERE. >> CNN'S EVAN PEREZ JOINS US NOW. EVAN, YOU WERE INSIDE OF THAT COURTROOM, AND I HAVE TO UNDERSTAND WHAT WERE YOUR KEY TAKEAWAYS AND WHAT WAS THE CLIMATE LIKE IN THE ACTUAL ATMOSPHERE IN THAT ROOM. WHAT DID YOU SEE? >> WELL, ONCE THE FORMER PRESIDENT FINALLY GOT INTO THE COURTROOM, THAT IS WHEN ALL OF THE NOISE IN THE ROOM STOPPED. EVERYBODY OBVIOUSLY TURNED THEIR ATTENTION TO THE FORMER PRESIDENT. HE WAS VERY SUBDUED, AND WALKED IN KIND OF LIKE A SAUNTER AND HE TOOK THE SEAT AT THE DEFENSE TABLE WITH ALONGSIDE HIS LAWYER JOHN SAUER AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT IS NOTEWORTHY AND UNLIKE SOME OF THE PREVIOUS TIMES THAT WE HAVE SEEN HIM IN COURT, HE HAD BORIS EPSTEIN IN HIS CORNER AND A COUPLE OF ROWS BEHIND WHERE THE FORMER PRESIDENT WAS SITTING, AND ALSO, WALT NADA WAS WITH THE FORMER PRESIDENT AGAIN, AND THAT IS SOMETHING THAT WE DON'T NORMALLY SEE IN THESE CASES. AND SO, HE WAS SUBDUED FOR MOST OF IT, AND WHILE JACK SMITH JUST SAT ABOUT 20 FEET AWAY FROM HIM, AND THEY DID NOT LOOK AT EACH OTHER, UNLIKE SOME OF THE PREVIOUS TIMES THEY HAVE BEEN IN COURT TOGETHER, AND THIS IS OBVIOUSLY A PROCEEDING WHERE THE FORMER PRESIDENT DID NOT HAVE TO ATTEND, BUT HE CHOSE TO ATTEND IT, AND PAYING RAPT ATTENTION, AND HE WAS LISTENING TO THE OPENING ARGUMENTS BY HIS ATTORNEY JOHN SAUER, AND WHEN THE OPENING PRESENTATION WAS WHEN YOU COULD SEE MORE ACTIVITY FROM HIM, AND LEANING FORWARD AND TAKING NOTES, AND PASSING NOTES TO JOHN SAUER, AND HE WAS VERY, VERY ATTENTIVE WHEN A COUPLE OF THE JUDGES SPOKE S AND WHEN THE JUDGE CHILDS WAS ASKING QUESTIONS, AND HE SEEMED VERY, VERY FOCUSED ON HER. ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I THOUGHT, OR WHAT I FOUND VERY INTERESTING IS THAT THERE ARE TIMES WHERE, YOU KNOW, HE SEEMED VERY, VERY MUCH TRYING TO PORTRAY HOW MUCH HE AGREED WITH HIS SIDE OF THE SESE BEING PRESENTED. HE LOOKED OVER AND HE NODDED STRONGLY WHEN SAUER WAS TALKING ABOUT HOW THE FACT THAT THE FORMER PRESIDENT WAS NOT, AND THERE WAS NO ALLEGATION AGAINST HIM THAT ANY OF THE CRIMES THAT ARE BEING ALLEGED HIM HAPPENED OUTSIDE OF OFFICE. THEY ALL HAPPENED WHILE HE WAS SITTING IN OFFICE. SO, HE NODDED VERY STRONGLY TO THAT ARGUMENT FROM JOHN SAUER. AGAIN, YOU KNOW, THE ROOM WAS QUITE FOCUSED ON THE FORMER PRESIDENT AND EVEN JAMES PEARCE, THE GOVERNMENT ATTORNEY FOR THE JUSTICE DEPARTMENT WHO WAS MAKING PRESENTATION, HIS PARENTS WERE SITTING A COUPLE OF ROWS BACK IN THE COURTROOM. APPARENTLY, THEY HAVE COME TO SOME OF THE PREVIOUS APPELLANT COURT ARGUMENTS, INCLUDING ONE THAT PEARCE ARGUED ON THE GAG ORDER A COUPLE OF MONTHS AGO. SO, EVERYBODY IN THE ROOM WAITED OF COURSE UNTIL THE JUDGES WALKED OUT AND THE FORMER PRESIDENT STOOD UP AND WALKED OUT SLOWLY OUTSIDE OF THE ROOM. OBVIOUSLY, THIS IS A VERY MOMENTOUS COURT PROCEEDING TODAY AND OBVIOUSLY THE CONSTITUTIONAL QUESTIONS ARE LOOMING VERY, VERY LARGE AND NOT ONLY OVER THIS TRIAL, BUT OVER FUTURE PRESIDENTS, AND SO, CERTAINLY I THINK THAT HE SEEMED TO BE VERY ANIMATED WHEN PEARCE WAS TALKING ABOUT THE IDEA THAT THERE WOULD BE FLOODGATES AND THE ONE SOUND THAT YOU JUST PLAYED A MINUTE AGO WHEN PEARCE SAID THAT HE DOES NOT BELIEVE THAT THERE WOULD A TIT-FOR-TAT, AND AGAIN, THE PRESIDENT WAS TAKING NOTES AND HANDING THEM OFF TO JOHN SAUER, HIS ATTORNEYS, AND FASCINATING COUPLE OF HOURS THERE. I THOUGHT THAT IT MIGHT GO EVEN LONGER BASED ON THE PREVIOUS PROCEEDING, BUT IT WAS ABSOLUTELY FASCINATING TO WATCH THE FORMER PRESIDENT SITTING THERE WATCHING HIS FATE BEING DECIDED BY THIS COURT. >> EVAN, FIRST OF ALL, THE MOM IN ME IS NOT GOING TO ALLOW ANY PARENT SHOWING UP IN THE CONSEQUENTIAL MATTER IN THE D.C. COURT, AND KUDOS TO THE PARENT, BUT YOU SAY THAT HE WAS PASSING NOTES TO HIS ATTORNEY WHO WAS ARGUING AND WERE THERE PARTICULAR MOMENTS THAT YOU SAW PRESIDENT TRUMP PARTICULARLY ANIMATED AND HANDING THE NOTES OVER OR CERTAIN ARGUMENT TIMES AND IMMUNITY FOR EXAMPLE OR OFFICIAL ACTS AND WHAT WERE THOSE MOMENTS? >> YEAH. WELL, YEAH, ABSOLUTELY. HE, THE IDEA THAT FOR EXAMPLE WHEN JUDGE PAN WAS ASKING ABOUT THIS IDEA THAT HE HAS TO BE IMPEACH AND HE HAS TO BE CONVICTED, AND TRUMP WAS TAKING FURIOUS NOTES DURING THAT PART OF IT, AND AGAIN, WHEN PEARCE WAS MAKING THE POINT THAT IN THE FUTURE THERE IS GOING TO BE SIMILAR PROSECUTIONS, TRUMP WAS FURIOUSLY MAKING NOTES AND HE LEANED OVER TO TALK TO HIS LAWYER WHEN FOR EXAMPLE JUDGE HENDERSON RAISED THE IDEA THAT, YOU KNOW, THE TAKE CARE CLAUSE THAT YOU WERE JUST DISCUSSING A FEW MOMENTS AGO WHERE THE IDEA THAT THE FORMER PRESIDENT WHEN HE TOOK OFFICE OBVIOUSLY HE TOOK AN OATH TO TAKE CARE AND TO MAKE SURE THAT THE LAWS ARE EXECUTED IN THIS COUNTRY, AND SHE SAID IT WAS PARADOXICAL THAT HE THEN WOULD BE IMMUNE FROM BEING PROSECUTED IF HE BROKE THOSE VERY LAW. AND HE LEANED OVER AND SPOKE TO HIS ATTORNEYS AGAIN DURING THAT BIT OF QUESTIONING. SO CLEARLY, HE WAS LISTENING VERY, VERY CLOSELY, AND EVERYBODY IN THE ROOM WAS EYES FOCUSED ON HIM. YOU KNOW, OBVIOUSLY TO SEE WHAT THE REACTIONS WOULD BE. VERY UNUSUAL TO HAVE A DEFENDANT COMING TO ONE OF THESE PROCEEDINGS. IN REFERENCE TO MR. PEARCE'S MOM, I ASKED HER, YOU KNOW, I ASKED WHY ARE YOU HERE TODAY, AND SHE SAID, YOU COULD NOT KEEP ME AWAY FROM HERE TODAY [ LAUGHTER ] SO MOM IS VERY MUCH, VERY MUCH INVESTED IN THE PROCEEDINGS HERE TODAY. >> MOMS EVERYWHERE ARE LIKE, YOU HAVE GOT THAT RIGHT, THANK YOU VERY MUCH. >> I AM SO GLAD THAT YOU ASKED THE QUESTION ABOUT THE NOTES, BECAUSE IT CAUGHT MY INTEREST, WHEN EVAN SAID THAT TRUMP WAS PASSING NOTES TO THE ATTORNEY, AND EVAN, A FEW MOMENTS HERE WHEN THE JUDGES HAD TO REPEATEDLY FOLLOW UP ON THE QUESTIONS AND REPHRASE THEM FOR TRUMP'S ATTORNEYS AND WHAT WERE THEIR FACIAL EXPRESSIONS AND BODY LANGUAGE DURING THIS? >> WELL, CERTAINLY, I THINK THAT THEY WERE TRYING TO HUE VERY CLOSE TO THE ARGUMENTS AND MAKE SURE THEY WERE NOT STRAYING VERY FAR FROM THE ARGUMENTS AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT THE GOVERNMENT POINTS OUT IS THAT TRUMP AND THE LEGAL TEAM HAVE EVOLVED IN SOME OF THE ARGUMENTS, AND SO CERTAINLY, I THINK THAT FOR MR. SAUER AS SOON AS HE HIT THE PODIUM, HE STARTED TO GETTING QUESTIONS FROM JUDGE CHILDS AND JUDGE HENDERSON, AND SO HE DIDN'T EVEN HAVE A MINUTE, REALLY TO DO HIS PRESENTATION, AND IT IS ALWAYS VERY FASCINATING TO WATCH THE LAWYERS WHO COME TO PREPARE FOR DAYS AND DAYS AND WEEKS, RIGHT, TO DO THIS PRESENTATION, AND THEN THEY COME IN HERE, AND IT IS RAPID FIRE QUESTIONS FROM THE JUDGES WHO DON'T HAVE THAT MUCH PATIENCE AND DON'T REALLY PAY ATTENTION TO THE CLOCK EITHER. SO THAT WAS A, I THINK THAT ALWAYS UNNERVING FOR ANY LAWYER, BUT THESE GUYS WERE ROLLING WITH THE PUNCHES. >> AND THERE WAS A PART IN THE CONVERSATION AND IT WAS JUDGE PAN, AND SHE ASKED ABOUT A QUOTE FROM DONALD TRUMP IN THE CONGRESSIONAL RECORD, AND PUT IT UP ON THE SCREEN, AND SHE SAYS, "SORRY, BUT THERE IS A QUOTE IN THE CONGRESSIONAL RECORD IN WHICH YOUR CLIENT SAID THROUGH COUNSEL NO FORMER OFFICE HOLDER IS IMMUNE FROM INVESTIGATION OR PROSECUTION." I AM WONDERING WHAT DONALD TRUMP WAS DOING WHEN RECEIPTS WERE PROVIDED IN THE COURTROOM. >> THOSE WERE ONE OF THE -- THAT IS ONE OF THE FEW MOMENTS WHERE I SAW HIM JUST LOOK, AND STARE STRAIGHT AT THE JUDGE, AND HE DID NOT HAVE MUCH OF A PHYSICAL REACTION. AND YOU KNOW, THERE ARE TIMES WHEN HE PURSES THE LIPS AND ONE OF THE MANNERISMS ESPECIALLY WHEN HE DOES NOT LIKE SOMETHING, AND LOOKS STRAIGHT AHEAD, AND THAT IS ONE OF THE MOMENT, AND VERY CHARACTERISTIC OF THE FORMER PRESIDENT, AND YOU KNOW, YOU KNOW WHEN THERE IS SOMETHING BEING SAID THAT HE DOESN'T LIKE, AND THAT IS ONE OF THE TELLS. >> AND I AM GUESSING THAT JACK SMITH WAS PRETTY STOIC THROUGHOUT? >> RIGHT. JACK SMITH WAS SITTING JUST A COUPLE OF ROWS BEHIND PEARCE AND THE GOVERNMENT TABLE AND HE CAME IN WITH A LARGE ENTOURAGE, AND ABOUT 20 PEOPLE OF JUSTICE LAWYERS AND STAFFERS AND FBI PEOPLE WHO ARE WORKING WITH THE PART OF THE INVESTIGATION AND HE WALKS IN, AND, YOU KNOW, FOR A WHILE, AS WE ARE WAITING FOR THE PROCEEDINGS TO WAIT TO BEGIN, SMITH WAS LOOKING AROUND AT SOME OF THE PORTRAITS AND THAT ONE ROOM, THAT ONE COURTROOM HAS PORTRAITS OF SOME OF THE JUDGES WHO HAVE SAT ON THIS APPEALS COURT IN THE PAST, AND SO, HE SORT OF FAMILIARIZED WITH SOME OF THE PEOPLE ON THE WALLS THERE. HE DID STOP TO TALK TO THE PEARCES, THE MOM AND DAD SITTING A FEW ROWS BACK, AND HE HAD A CHAT WITH THEM, BUT STOIC, AND HE DID NOT LOOK AT THE FORMER PRESIDENT UNLIKE PREVIOUS TIMES WHERE WE SAW THEM SORT OF EXCHANGE GLANCES SHORTLY AND BRIEFLY, AND THAT DID NOT SEEM TO HAPPEN TODAY THAT I COULD SEE. >> EVAN PERE
