Former President Donald Trump said he is unable to testify in his hush money case because of “an unconstitutional gag order” imposed against him—though the gag order does not actually prohibit him from taking the stand.
Republican presidential candidate, former President Donald Trump speaks to the media after the day's ... [+]
“Well I'm not allowed to testify, I’m under a gag order,” Trump said after court Thursday before adding his legal team will be appealing the gag order imposed by Judge Juan Merchan, who Trump said was “totally conflicted.”
Trump is under a gag order that prevents him from making public statements about potential witnesses, jurors, counsel and others in the case that could interfere with the proceedings—but it does not prevent him from testifying, multiple outlets reported.
The comments mark an apparent major reversal for the former president, who said last month he planned to testify in his trial and that all he can do is tell the truth, adding there is no case against him.
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“Other people are allowed to do whatever they want to us, and I’m not allowed as a presidential candidate—the leading candidate, the Republican Party nominee, and the one who’s leading Biden by a lot—I’m not allowed to talk,” Trump said of the gag order after court Thursday.
$9,000. That’s how much Trump was fined earlier this week for violating the gag order put in place by Merchan, who found the former president violated it nine times—each of which carried a $1,000 fine. Violations can also be punished with up to 30 days in prison under New York law, and Merchan suggested Trump could face time behind bars if he continues to violate the order.
Trump’s criminal trial, in which he is facing 34 felony counts of falsifying business records related to a hush money payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels, began last month. Prosecutors allege Trump misidentified a series of payments to his then-attorney Michael Cohen as legal services when they were actually reimbursements for hush money paid to Daniels to prevent her from discussing her alleged affair with Trump before the 2016 election. Trump was hit with a gag order in the trial before it began in part because he was regularly attacking Merchan’s daughter, Cohen and others tied to the case on his social media platform, Truth Social. Merchan described Trump’s statements as “threatening, inflammatory, denigrating,” and he expanded the gag order after just one week to include family members of the court after Trump continued to attack his daughter.