Judge #Engoron has issued a gag order in the #Trump civil fraud trial after Trump posted about the judge's clerk.
Engoron: "Consider this statement a gag order forbidding all parties from posting emailing or speaking publicly about any of my staff." #legal#TrumpTrial 1/...
🤢Oh geez. Sorry for TMI, but Meiselas is reporting this:
Meiselas: What I’m hearing from credible sources is that Donald #Trump is actually farting in the courtroom… I’m hearing it from actual credible people that as he’s kind of falling asleep, he’s actually passing gas and that his lawyers are really struggling with the smell. #TrumpTrial
Quite a quote from Eric Swalwell on the parade of GOP members attending #TrumpTrial this morning:
“I don’t think that anything could animate the phrase ‘do-nothing Congress’ more than missing votes and canceling hearings to go up and be a spectator at your cult leader’s trial.”
Justice Merchan starts off will the prosecution motion for contempt.
He tells Trump he's about to issue his ruling, in which he will again find Trump in contempt of court.
The last thing I want to do is put you in jail, Justice Merchan says to Trump. You are the former President of the United States and possibly the next President as well.
But "going forward," he continues, "this court will have to consider jail sanctions" if necessary.
So at 11:00 a.m. ET, #Trump posts on Truth Social calling Judge Merchan's courtroom a "kangaroo court" and calling on Merchan to recuse himself. Trump also assails the gag order, (falsely) claiming that he cannot defend himself.
This while we await a ruling from Judge Merchan on Trump's 10 violations of the #GagOrder... #TrumpTrial#legal
Can we please all agree that this experiment of giving a dumb TV host and shady real estate developer with no government knowledge, 6 bankruptcies, 42 sexual assault allegations, 7,384 lawsuits, and $5,563,000,000 in debt our nuclear secrets did not go well at all? #TrumpTrial
Break is over in courtroom. I've caught you up on most everything in previous toots, so go to my feed for details.
Press:
Prosecutor: Michael Cohen accepted responsibility. So we should be allowed to bring that out on direct and that he lied on Defendant's behest. That changed, when Michael Cohen decided to accept responsibility. So evidence about the plea is essential
Justice Merchan called #Trump’s lawyer to a sidebar to say Trump was “cursing audibly” & possibly intimidating Daniels... “I understand your client is upset at this pt, but he is cursing audibly & shaking his head visually & that’s contemptuous. It has the potential to intimidate the witness & the jury can see that...I am speaking to you here at the bench because I don’t want to embarrass him. You need to speak to him. I won’t tolerate that.” #TrumpTrial https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/05/07/stormy-daniels-testimony-trump-hush-money-trial/
#Trump faces 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in connection w/a #HushMoney payment made to a porn star to influence the 2016 election. The case could be in the jury’s hands as early as Wed.
Tues 29 May 2024 🧵
Good morning! It’s the last day of the #TrumpTrial before jury #deliberations.
Today Justice #Merchan will give #JuryInstructions. Then they will discuss the case among themselves for the first time; they have not been allowed to even discuss it w/each other as yet.
Closing arguments took place yesterday, & the lawyers will have no further opportunity to address the jurors before they determine whether #Trump is #guilty or not guilty of 34 felonies.
#Trump currently has senior #elected officials, including a possible future VP nominee, sitting in the courtroom listening to a recording of him, as a candidate, talking w/his lawyer about paying for material from The #NationalEnquirer. Trump has completely got the party under his boot.
2 #Republican senators, a congresswoman & 2 state AGs are listening to a now-disbarred lawyer advising Trump on a #HushMoney payment.
Each page yesterday took him just a little more than a minute, so this will take >30 mins.
Between that & the testimony readbacks, also expected to take >30 mins, there will likely be >1 hour this morning w/the jury in the courtroom, not actively deliberating.
Fmr DC Metropolitan PD Officer #MichaelFanone’s 78-year-old mother was the victim of a #swatting call hours after he spoke outside the criminal #TrumpTrial in #NewYork.
During the #insurrection on #Jan6, Fanone was nearly killed by #Trump supporters while protecting congresspeople & staff inside the Capitol building.
#Trump has posted a photo on his social media w/o comment — the photo of the #UpsideDown American #flag that was hung outside the home of #SCOTUS justice Samuel #Alito after the Capitol riot in 2021. The upside down flag was a symbol of distress but is now a #RightWing symbol of #Jan6, Stop the Steal & support for Trump. It was posted by several other #Republicans as well.