'Where's Melania?' Trump shouted down with questions as he arrives at hush money trial
Former President Donald Trump was asked why his wife, Melania, was not attending his criminal trial about hush money paid to cover up a sex scandal.
Before walking into a Manhattan courtroom on Monday, Trump made remarks to the media.
"Nothing like this has ever happened before," the former president complained. "It's never been anything like it. Every legal scholar said this case is nonsense. It should never have been brought."
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Trump called the case "political persecution."
"And that's why I'm very proud to be here," he said. "This is an assault on our country, and it's a country that's failing."
"It's a country that's run by an incompetent man who's very much involved in this case," Trump added. "This is really an attack on a political opponent. That's all it is. So I'm very honored to be here."
As Trump walked into the courtroom, he ignored questions that were shouted to him.
"Where's Melania?" one questioner asked.
Trump faces 34 felony counts of falsifying business records, charges that could carry a sentence of up to four years in prison for each count. He is accused of falsifying the records to cover up hush money payments to adult movie actress Stormy Daniels after an alleged affair.
He has denied all the allegations.