Trump Gets Gag Order In Federal Election Case

Topline

U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan imposed a limited gag order on former President Donald Trump on Monday, barring the former president from making some public statements involving parties in the federal case against him for trying to overturn the 2020 election after prosecutors argued his social media posts could influence the case—but the order didn’t go quite as far as what the Justice Department asked for.

Former President Donald Trump speaks to guests during a rally on October 7 in Waterloo, Iowa.

Getty Images

Key Facts

Chutkan imposed the gag order following a hearing Monday over whether restrictions on Trump’s speech were necessary, after prosecutors pointed to social media posts the ex-president shared—like making threats against potential witnesses and attacking Justice Department Special Counsel Jack Smith and his spouse.

The gag order restricts what Trump can say about Smith, potential witnesses in the case and the court and its staff, CBS News reports, after the DOJ asked Chutkan to bar Trump from making “disparaging” or “inflammatory” comments about parties in the case.

Trump is still allowed under the order to criticize the Justice Department and residents of Washington, D.C.—who Trump claims are biased against him and therefore means he won’t get a fair jury—along with former Vice President Mike Pence about events outside of the 2020 election under the order, according to the New York Times, even though the DOJ had also asked for restrictions in regard to them.

Trump is also allowed to criticize the Biden Administration, the Times reported.

Chutkan issued her order verbally from the bench after Monday’s hearing and will still issue a more detailed written order.

Trump’s attorneys argued in court that a gag order would be an unlawful infringement on Trump’s free speech rights as a presidential candidate and that statements he’s made on social media haven’t infringed on the case, but Chutkan appeared unsympathetic to that argument, Politico noted, laughing after Trump attorney John Lauro said the court’s current orders against Trump were “working” and responding, “I have to take issue with that.”

Trump said Monday he’ll appeal the gag order, with a spokesperson for his campaign calling it “an absolute abomination.”

Crucial Quote

“Mr. Trump is a criminal defendant. He is facing four felony charges,” Chutkan said Monday, as quoted by Politico. “He is under the supervision of the criminal justice system and he must comply with the conditions of release. He does not have the right to say and do exactly as he pleases.”

Chief Critic

The Trump campaign said Monday the gag order was “another partisan knife stuck in the heart of our Democracy by Crooked Joe Biden, who was granted the right to muzzle his political opponent.” The former president previously hit out against the possibility that a gag order could be imposed on him in a Truth Social post Sunday night, saying prosecutors “want to take away my First Amendment rights, and my ability to both campaign and defend myself. In other words, they want to cheat and interfere in the 2024 Presidential Election.”

What To Watch For

Chutkan said Monday she’ll impose “sanctions” if Trump violates the gag order, but did not specify what those punishments will look like, with the Times reporting the judge said she intends to determine the consequences if and when Trump goes against the order. Legal experts have suggested any violations would likely first result in smaller punishments like fines, while if Trump keeps violating the order, it could escalate to something as serious as prison time. Politico suggests potential penalties could also include moves like limiting Trump’s access to the internet or social media use.

Tangent

Trump’s trial in the federal election case is scheduled to begin on March 4, 2024, a date that Chutkan made clear Monday she does not intend to push back. Trump’s attorneys repeatedly suggested during the hearing that the trial should be pushed back until after the election in order to make things easier about what Trump can say while campaigning. “This trial will not yield to the election cycle,” Chutkan responded, as quoted by Bloomberg.

Key Background

Prosecutors first asked Chutkan in September to impose a gag order on Trump, claiming the former president’s public posts are “likely to undermine confidence in the justice system, affect the jury pool, or otherwise prejudice the due administration of justice.” The DOJ pointed to public comments Trump had made like suggesting then chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley should be executed and calling Smith a “thug” who’s biased against him. The gag order now marks the second such order that’s been imposed on the former president, as the judge overseeing a civil fraud trial against Trump and his company in New York ordered parties earlier in October not to publicly speak about court staff after the ex-president disparaged the judge’s clerk on social media. Legal experts and critics have speculated since Trump’s first indictment in April over whether any judge would impose a gag order on Trump, however, as the former president has repeatedly taken to social media to attack his opponents in the cases against him.