Everyone in America insists “no one is above the law” and then judges repeatedly act like they think Trump is, in fact, above the law.
You have one job. Do it.
Per our reporting, Trump has indicated to people close to him that one reason he doesn’t fear severe consequences, even tho this is a criminal trial, from doing things like attacking the judge’s daughter or potentially violating a gag order is because last year he faced the threat of gag orders &…
The Judge's decision here was 100% correct; the letter of the prior order at least arguably (and it was the better argument) did not include family members of the Judge and DA specifically, and you can't hold someone in contempt of an order unless it's crystal clear in advance the order bars the act
Tossing him in Rikers, or even holding a contempt hearing, would get reversed *and* open the possibility of a forced recusal on appeal that could derail the trial or overturn a verdict ("clearly the judge erred because he was upset at Trump over his daughter, it infected the whole trial)
Not a lawyer, but this seems right to me.
I think the problem is that a lot of these responses are emotional - and I'm with them on that. I want Trump locked up... but by this point if they could do that because of my feelings they could have locked up Biden, or Pelosi, or... because of MAGAs.
Seconding, having several times been on the other side of that argument. Prison administrators love thinking of the thing that violates the spirit but not the letter of the injunction. First step is always modifying the injunction.
I'm no so sure. I think plenty of local judges would have thrown my old clients in jail.
The decision here was right, but I don't agree that any joe schmo wouldn't have gotten revoked for it.
No judge wants to be the first to hold Trump to the same standard as any other criminal defendant just as no one in the fable wanted to be the first to say that the emperor had no clothes.
Trump is good at going just over the line, while maintaining deniability. I think the order today sets a clear boundary, the only criticism may be that it should have been clearer from the start.
Judges want their judgments to withstand appeal. Trump is acting out as a particularly bad defendant hoping for a harsh response from the court, which he can then use to claim unfair treatment as a basis for appeal. The result is that Trump gets kid glove treatment like no other criminal defendant.
Painting with a broad brush I know, but the words “intestinal fortitude” and “lawyers” aren’t often found in the same sentence.
“Gelatinous” on the other hand …
