Judge Lashes Out At Donald Trump's Gag Order Defense: 'You're Losing All Credibility With The Court'
Judge Juan Merchan did not seem very sympathetic to Donald Trump's gag order defense, blasting his team of lawyers who argued that — as a political candidate — Trump needed the freedom to respond to attacks by his naysayers.
According to 'Rolling Stone,' Judge Merchan lashed out at this defense, saying, "I keep asking you over and over again for a specific answer, and I'm not getting an answer,"
Manhattan prosecutors argued that Trump, 77, should be sanctioned for any "willful" violations of the gag order. Trump should be fined $1,000 for each violation, and any future violations of the gag order "can be punished not only with additional fines but also with a term of incarceration of up to 30 days," prosecutors argued. Prosecutors noted at least ten reported instances where they claimed the father of five violated the order.
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Judge Merchan also shut down the defense's stance that Trump's reposts on Truth Social, an alt-tech social media platform owned by Trump Media & Technology Group that launched in February 2022, did not constitute violations of the gag order.
"Your client can wash your hands of it," Judge Merchan said of reposts, telling Trump's attorney Todd Blanche that posts do not just "magically" appear on Trump's account. "It's not passive [...] someone had to do something."
"It's clear he knows about the order, he knows what he's not allowed to do, and he does it anyway," prosecutor Chris Controy claimed.
The 45th president of the United States returned to Truth Social where he called Merchan "highly conflicted."
"JUDGE JUAN MERCHAN, HAS TAKEN AWAY MY CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHT TO FREE SPEECH," he wrote on Truth Social. "EVERYBODY IS ALLOWED TO TALK AND LIE ABOUT ME, BUT I AM NOT ALLOWED TO DEFEND MYSELF. THIS IS A KANGAROO COURT, AND THE JUDGE SHOULD RECUSE HIMSELF!"
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Judge Juan Merchan has not yet issued a decision on whether Trump violated a gag order and, if so, what kind of sanction he should face, according to Deadline.
