Tag: Donald Trump

Trump advocates for state-level abortion policies, avoids national ban

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Former President Donald Trump said states should decide abortion policy, avoiding taking a position on a national ban as he struggles to navigate a motivating issue for Democrats.

“My view is now that we have abortion where everybody wanted it from a legal standpoint,” he said in a video posted on Truth Social, praising the overturning of Roe v. Wade in 2022 that allowed states to set their own standards for access to abortion.

“Many states will be different,” he said. “Many will have a different number of weeks or some will have more conservative than others and that’s what they will be. At the end of the day, it’s all about the will of the people.”

Trump resisted pressure from anti-abortion groups to set a firm limit, such as 15 weeks of pregnancy, for a national abortion ban. Yet that will almost certainly do little to blunt attacks from Democrats, who blame him for the Supreme Court decision ending nationwide abortion rights, while leaving his religious conservative allies dissatisfied.

“Trump is scrambling,” President Joe Biden, who will face the former president again in November, said in a statement. “He’s worried that since he’s the one responsible for overturning Roe the voters will hold him accountable in 2024.”

Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, a prominent conservative group, said it was “deeply disappointed” in Trump’s announcement and that declining to back nationwide limits on abortion “cedes the national debate to the Democrats.”

Trump and his campaign for months have tried to neutralise one of the Republican’s biggest disadvantages — their stance on reproductive rights — heading into the general election. Democrats have successfully used the issue in elections since the Supreme Court’s decision two years ago.

Trump did not call for exceptions to abortion bans, but said he supported them.

“Like Ronald Reagan, I am strongly in favor of exceptions for rape, incest and the life of the mother,” he said. “You must follow your heart on this issue.”

The former president also said he supported ensuring access to IVF technology “in every state in America.”

By leaving abortion up to the states, Trump is sidestepping the division in his party between anti-abortion advocates, many of whom want abortion halted in the US entirely, and moderate voters, who feel comfortable with abortion in certain circumstances.

Biden and his Democratic allies have used the Republican Party’s divided position on abortion to galvanize its base, lambasting the former president in television ads and on the campaign trail on his previous statements on abortion.

Polls consistently show widespread support for reproductive rights and every ballot initiative protecting abortion access since the Supreme Court ruling has won, including in Republican-dominated states such as Kansas, Kentucky and Ohio.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Donald Trump judge refuses to delay hush-money case over immunity

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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A New York judge denied Donald Trump’s request to delay his upcoming hush money trial until after the US Supreme Court rules on the former president’s immunity defense in an unrelated federal case over the 2020 election.

The ruling on Wednesday by Judge Juan Merchan clears the way for the first of Trump’s four criminal cases to go before a jury as planned on April 15. Trump made the request early last month, which Merchan said was far too late.

“This Court finds that Defendant had myriad opportunities to raise the claim of presidential immunity well before March 7, 2024,” almost a year after the former president was indicted, the judge wrote.

Merchan’s ruling is the latest setback in the case for Trump, who was hit last week with a gag order barring him from publicly discussing jurors or prosecutors during the trial in order to protect their safety. The judge expanded the gag order on Monday to include his own family members after Trump attacked the Merchan’s daughter online over the weekend.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg has accused the real estate mogul of falsifying dozens of business records to disguise a payment to porn star Stormy Daniels before the 2016 election to keep voters from hearing her claim about an extramarital affair a decade earlier. Jury selection is scheduled to begin April 15.

Prosecutors allege Trump engaged in a “pressure campaign” in 2018 to ensure that his former lawyer and fixer Michael Cohen didn’t cooperate with a federal investigation of hush-money payments. Cohen, who pleaded guilty to violating campaign finance law, is expected to be a key witness against his former boss.

‘Presidential Acts’

Trump, who is campaigning to return to the White House in this year’s election, on March 7 asked Merchan to adjourn the trial until the Supreme Court ruled on his immunity argument in a separate federal criminal case in Washington over his alleged attempt to interfere with the 2020 election. Justices hear arguments in that case on April 25, but may not rule until June. The former president also asked Merchan to bar evidence of comments he made while president, arguing they were made in his official capacity.

Bragg had argued that Trump’s claim of presidential immunity should be rejected because the former president failed to provide any legal authority to support his claim that the state crimes he’s accused of are “presidential acts.” Trump faces 34 felony counts of falsifying business records.

In his ruling, Merchan said Trump had “ample notice” to make his immunity request yet waited until March 7, just weeks before the trial originally scheduled to begin March 25. Trump’s lawyers asked for the New York trial to be delayed until the Supreme Court rules in the separate federal election-fraud case in Washington.

Trump “fails to explain why the defendant waited so long” to raise the argument, the judge said. Bragg’s indictment was unsealed April 4, 2023.

Trump also raised the presidential immunity argument too late in the defamation suit brought against him in 2019 by writer E. Jean Carroll. The judge in that case allowed Carroll’s claim to go to trial after Trump belatedly argued he was immune because his comments related to statements he made from the White House.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Donald Trump sues co-founders of Trump Media, seeks to void their stock

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Donald Trump is suing two co-founders of Trump Media & Technology Group, the newly public parent company of his Truth Social platform, arguing that they should forfeit their stock in the company because they set it up improperly.

The former US president’s lawsuit, which was filed on March 24 in Florida state court, follows a complaint filed in February by those co-founders, Andy Litinsky and Wes Moss. Their lawsuit sought to prevent Trump from taking steps the two said would sharply reduce their combined 8.6% stake in Trump Media. The pair filed their lawsuit in the Delaware Court of Chancery.

Trump’s lawsuit claims that Litinsky and Moss, who were both contestants on Trump’s reality TV show “The Apprentice,” mishandled an attempt to take Trump Media public several years ago, allegedly putting the whole project “on ice” for more than a year and a half.

But it also targets the pair over their Delaware suit against Trump, saying that it was one of several attempts they made to block Trump Media’s ultimately successful plan to go public. Trump Media accomplished that goal by merging with a publicly traded shell company called Digital World Acquisition in March.

Trump Media shares have fluctuated wildly since its stock market debut. On Tuesday, the stock closed at $51.60, up 6%, valuing the entire company at $5.9 billion.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

US presidential elections: Joe Biden and Donald Trump secure victories in four state primaries

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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US President Joe Biden and his Republican rival and predecessor Donald Trump have easily won their presidential primaries in four more states as they are set for a 2020 rematch in November.

On Tuesday, hundreds of delegates were up for grabs in Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York and the crucial battleground state of Wisconsin.

Multiple names remained on the presidential ballots in the four states, though neither Trump, 77, nor Biden, 81, faced any major challenger.

In all the four states where the primaries were held Tuesday, Trump bagged more than 75 per cent of the votes, while Biden, a Democrat, received more than 80 per cent of the votes.

Trump with four wins now has 1,860 delegates. Biden has so far won 3,030 delegates as against the minimum requirement of 1,968 delegates.

Biden and Trump have already amassed enough delegates to win their respective nominations. But the turnout could provide more clues about the election on November 5.

Their rematch is expected to mirror the 2020 campaign, though Trump will run this time under the spectre of 91 felony charges.

Their nominations will be confirmed at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee in July and the Democratic National Convention in Chicago in August.

Connecticut and Rhode Island allowed voters to vote “uncommitted” in the primary, while Wisconsin offered a similar option of “uninstructed delegation”.

There was an effort in Wisconsin on Tuesday by anti-Biden protesters to encourage people in the Democratic primary to pick the “uninstructed” option in opposition to Biden’s policies on the Israel-Hamas war.

Pressure has been growing on Biden especially, to push harder for a ceasefire in Gaza, with some states, including Michigan, fostering similar campaigns for residents to submit “uncommitted votes” for the president.

These victories offer insights into base voter enthusiasm for the upcoming 2020 rematch, particularly in Wisconsin, a crucial November battleground.

Biden and the Democratic National Committee have outpaced Trump and the Republicans in fundraising. Biden claimed the largest single-event fundraising record last week when he received USD 26 million at a star-studded New York event. Trump hopes to bring in USD 33 million at a Palm Beach, Florida fundraiser.

Meanwhile, CNN reported that Democrats have been growing increasingly anxious about public polls showing Trump making unprecedented inroads among Black and Hispanic voters.

“But there may be reasons for Republicans to feel uneasy about these polls too,” it said, adding that surveys now consistently show Trump leading President Joe Biden nationally and in almost all of the key swing states.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Donald Trump pays $175 million bond to avert asset seizure

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Donald Trump followed through on his vow to pay a $175 million bond to put a massive civil fraud verdict on hold while he appeals it, assuring New York state won’t start seizing the former president’s assets, at least for now.

The bond, posted on Monday with a Manhattan appeals court, prevents enforcement of a $454 million penalty levied by a judge against the real estate mogul in February for lying about his assets for years to get better loan terms. Trump, who is campaigning to return to the White House in the November election, is still on the hook for the full amount — plus millions in interest — if his appeal fails.

Trump initially had struggled to get a bond because he was required to put up 120% of the full penalty, or more than half a billion dollars, in cash. But the appeals court on March 25 granted his request for a smaller bond, which Trump claimed was a sign the appeals court would eventually overturn the verdict.

“As promised, President Trump has posted bond,” his lawyer Alina Habba said in a statement. “He looks forward to vindicating his rights on appeal and overturning this unjust verdict.”

The bond was arranged and signed by Los Angeles-based Knight Specialty Insurance Co., a relatively small player in the industry whose chairman Don Hankey built a fortune by his expanding his car dealership company into financial services. Trump previously turned to Chubb Ltd.’s Federal Insurance Co. for an appeal bond to cover an $83.3 million verdict against him in writer E. Jean Carroll’s defamation lawsuit, which he lost in January.

The former president had said a full bond was “unattainable” because 30 insurance companies that arrange such bonds wouldn’t take his real estate as collateral and would only take cash. Trump recently said he had nearly $500 million in cash and vowed to cover the reduced bond with it.

New York Attorney General Letitia James, who sued Trump and won at a non-jury trial, had argued a full bond was necessary because Trump can’t be trusted to pay the fine if he loses the appeal.

Getting the smaller bond helped Trump overcome one the biggest financial obstacles of his career. Without it, the former president claimed he’d be forced to hold a “fire sale” of assets to raise cash, hurting his ability to run his company and contribute to his campaign. His losses from such sales would be irreversible, he argued, even if he won the appeal.

James, a Democrat, had said she would seize his assets to cover the judgment if he didn’t arrange the bond. Her office had already begun laying the ground work to do so in nearby Westchester County, where Trump owns a golf course and a 212-acre estate called Seven Springs.

Trump also faces four criminal prosecutions, including two cases alleging he conspired to overturn the result of the 2020 presidential election. His first criminal trial, over charges he falsified business records to conceal a hush money payment to a porn star before the 2016 election, is set to go to trial April 15 in Manhattan.

Trump denies wrongdoing in all the cases and claims without evidence that they’re part of a Democratic-led “witch hunt” against him to undermine his campaign.

Also Read: Donald Trump gag order expanded by New York judge before hush-money trial

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Donald Trump gag order expanded by New York judge before hush-money trial

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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The New York judge presiding over Donald Trump’s hush-money trial this month expanded a gag order in the case, after the former president attacked the judge and his daughter on social media.

Judge Juan Merchan had already restricted what Trump could say publicly about jurors and potential witnesses in the trial that starts April 15. But Merchan expanded his March 26 gag order Monday to include comments about prosecutors, court employees and their families. However, Trump can still make comments about Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, who brought the criminal charges.

“The court has an obligation to prevent outside influences, including extrajudicial speech, from disturbing the integrity of the court,” Merchan wrote. “The uncontested record reflecting the defendant’s prior extrajudicial statements establishes a sufficient risk to the administration of justice.”

Bragg had requested more restrictions last week, citing Trump’s false claim that Merchan’s daughter Loren had posted an image of the former president behind bars on her social media account. Court officials said the Twitter account Trump cited was manipulated to look like the one Loren Merchan had deleted about a year ago.

Trump, who is campaigning for a return to the White House, is accused of falsifying business records in 2016 to conceal a sex scandal from voters in the runup to the presidential election that year. He allegedly authorized payments to a porn star who claimed she had an affair with the real estate mogul a decade earlier.

‘Witch Hunt’

The former president, who is the presumptive Republican nominee for president in 2024, has denied wrongdoing in the case, as well as in two other criminal prosecutions tied to election interference and one involving classified documents. He says they’re all part of a political “witch hunt” by Democrats.

Prosecutors asked Merchan on Monday to warn Trump that his access to jurors’ names, which already are being withheld from the public, could be “forfeited by continued harassing or disruptive conduct.” The former president appears to be under the false impression that, as a criminal defendant, he has “a constitutional right to target the family of the court,” the district attorney’s lawyers said.

Bragg’s office also asked the judge to clarify the scope of his gag order, saying Trump’s claim about Merchan’s daughter was a “blatant falsehood” that had already been rejected by the court last year.

Trump’s lawyers argued Monday the judge didn’t need to clarify his order and assailed Merchan for speaking to a reporter and telling her he “wouldn’t talk about the case.” They also hinted at a second request for Merchan to recuse himself based on “newly discovered evidence.” An earlier attempt was rejected in August.

But the judge said Trump’s statements “went far beyond defending himself against ‘attacks’ by ‘public figures.”’ He said the former president’s “statements were threatening, inflammatory, denigrating,” and targeted court staff and private individuals, “including grand jurors performing their civic duty.”

The judge said his expanded gag order is consistent with the one US District Judge Tanya Chutkan placed upon the former president in his pending federal case in Washington, DC.

Merchan said Trump doesn’t deny making the statements and that prior orders had little impact on limiting his behavior. “Given that the eve of trial is upon us,” the judge said “the risk of harm is now paramount.”

Trump claimed Merchan’s daughter, who works at a political firm that has advised Democrats, was profiting from her father’s rulings.

“Judge’s daughter is allowed to post pictures of her ‘dream’ of putting me in jail,” Trump complained March 27, a day after Merchan imposed the original gag order. “I am not allowed to talk about the attacks against me.”

A day later, Bragg’s office asked Merchan to expand the gag order and direct Trump to “immediately desist from attacks on family members.” They also asked the court to give Trump a “judicial warning of possible contempt” to prevent “further offensive conduct.” Trump’s comments could chill potential prosecution witnesses and make them fear for their safety, according to Bragg.

But Trump’s lawyers doubled down Friday, writing that Merchan’s daughter “is actively supporting adversarial campaign speech by President Trump’s political opponents.” They argued the gag order shouldn’t be expanded and doesn’t currently include court officials or their families. They asked Merchan to hold a hearing if he considers amplifying his order, arguing further restrictions would restrict Trump’s free-speech rights on the campaign trail.

Merchan’s daughter had come up in court last year, when he rejected Trump’s argument that the judge should step aside from the case. At the time, the former president complained about Loren Merchan’s job as well as a $15 donation the judge made to Joe Biden’s 2020 presidential campaign.

Trump “failed to demonstrate that there exists concrete or even realistic reasons for recusal to be appropriate, much less required on these grounds,” Merchan said in an August 14 ruling.

Also Read: Israel agrees to US talks on Rafah after scrapping earlier visit

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Joe Biden says most of world leaders told him not to ‘let Trump win’ 2024 Presidential elections

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Making a forceful case for his re-election, US President Joe Biden has claimed that during his meetings with world leaders, including at the G20 summit in India, almost every one of them told him not to let his predecessor Donald Trump win in 2024 as they feel it would put their democracies in danger.

Former Presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton also joined Biden on Thursday night in New York at the most lucrative fundraiser of the 2024 campaign, warning fellow Democrats that Trump, a Republican, must be defeated. “Trump says if he loses again again in November, there will be a bloodbath. What the hell is with this guy? No, I’m I’m not no, I’m really serious. It concerns me the most,” Biden said.

“And but whether it’s the G20 meeting in India or whatever the meeting where there are other heads of state, I am not exaggerating when I say and I say it in front of the press without giving the names almost every one of the world leaders finds an excuse to get me alone for a moment, put their hand on my arm, and say, You can’t let him win. My meaning his country or her country my democracy is at stake. My democracy is at stake,” he said.

India hosted the G20 Summit in New Delhi for the first time from September 9-10. Biden, 81, the incumbent, faced no viable competition for the Democratic nomination. His predecessor in office, Trump, 77, on the other hand easily saw off a crowded field in the Republican primary. Now they are set for a rematch of 2020 in the November 5 elections.

Biden also slammed Trump for walking away from NATO. “This is a guy who walked away from NATO…told Putin he could do whatever he wants if they’re not paying their dues,” Biden said.

“Just just look at what he’s done. The rest of the world is wondering what in the hell is happening to us. And they’re relieved, not because I’m so special but that I’m not Trump. I’m serious. I wish it was because they thought Biden was such a wonderful guy, ” Biden said amidst laughter.

“I think they respect me. I think they listen to me. But the point is, it’s because they’re scared to death for their countries if he (Trump) were to win again,” Biden said. All Americans including Democrats, independents, and Republicans should say that there is no place ever for political violence, for physical violence in the country’s political system, he said.

“We’re at a real inflection point in history. Things are changing. This guy denies there is global warming. This guy wants to get rid of not only Roe v. Wade (right to abortion) – by the way which he brags about having done – he wants to get rid of the ability of anyone anywhere in America to have the right to choose. All the things he’s doing are so old,” Biden said.

Clinton said voters should put aside their differences given the stakes of the race. Clinton accused Trump while in office of taking credit for an economy that had started improving under Obama and said Biden later inherited “a mess” left by Trump.

“Joe is absolutely right that we’ve got not just a nominee, but frankly a party and an entire infrastructure that increasingly seems unconcerned with the essence of America,” Obama said of Trump and Republicans. “But we also have a positive story to tell about the future,” he said.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Trump Media adds $1.1 billion in value day after debut

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Former president Donald Trump’s Trump Media & Technology Group Corp powered higher on Wednesday after a stellar debut, as investors use it as a way to bet on Trump’s 2024 re-election campaign.

Investors flocked back to the parent company of Truth Social, driving shares up 14% after paring an earlier increase, and adding some $1.1 billion to its value. The move higher came after the stock jumped to a roughly two-year peak on Tuesday when the media startup traded for the first time as a public company. The gains bring Trump’s personal stake to more than $5 billion, adding to the former president’s paper wealth.

More than 32 million shares changed hands on Wednesday, making it one of the most actively traded companies in the US. The strong interest comes after the stock saw its busiest day since the company announced a blank-check merger with Digital World Acquisition Corp. in October 2021 with nearly 56 million shares traded.

The firm behind Truth Social has stated its mission to fight against big tech companies like Meta Platforms Inc., Netflix Inc., and Elon Musk’s X, has drawn hoards of individual investors that are touting their investments on popular chatrooms like Reddit Inc.’s WallStreetBets forum and StockTwits.

The potential funds come at a critical time for Trump, who is paying millions of dollars a month to fund his ongoing legal troubles, including four criminal prosecutions. His first criminal trial — alleging he falsified business records to conceal hush money payments to a porn star before the 2016 election — is set to start April 15.

Trump was also hit last month with a $454 million penalty after the New York attorney general proved at trial that he’d inflated his net wealth by billions of dollars a year in bank transactions. Trump has an April 4 deadline to post a $175 million bond to put that judgment on hold while he appeals.

The stock — which traded under Digital World’s ticker DWAC prior to this week’s debut — soared some 278% this year. The eye-popping rally has also made it the most expensive and riskiest stock for short sellers to bet against.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Donald Trump barred from attacking jurors, lawyers in hush-money trial

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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The judge overseeing Donald Trump’s first criminal trial issued a gag order barring the former president from making comments about jurors, prosecutors and potential witnesses, citing a threat to their safety.

New York Justice Juan Merchan said the order sought by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg is justified by Trump’s “longstanding history” of using social media to attack individuals involved in the array of civil and criminal cases against him. Crucially, the ruling will prevent comments “targeting jurors and exposing them to an atmosphere of intimidation” at a trial starting April 15. He’s also barred from directing others to make the comments.

“The uncontested record reflecting the defendant’s prior extrajudicial statements establishes a sufficient risk to the administration of justice” to warrant a gag order, Merchan said Tuesday, adding that the order had been “narrowly tailored.”

Trump is accused in the case of falsifying business records to conceal a hush money payment to a porn star before the 2016 election, part of an alleged scheme to keep voters in the dark about his purported conduct with women. It’s one of four criminal prosecutions against the former president, including two that allege he conspired to overturn the 2020 election after he lost to Joe Biden.

Trump’s behavior has been a constant concern for federal, state and local prosecutors given the influence he has over his supporters and his alleged incitement of the Jan. 6, 2021, assault on the US Capitol. Before he was indicted by Bragg last year, Trump warned of “death and destruction” if he was charged, called the district attorney a “degenerate psychopath” and assailed former Trump Organization lawyer Michael Cohen, the prosecution’s star witness.

Merchan’s order won’t prevent Trump from campaigning or denying wrongdoing in the case. But it does mean that Bragg, Cohen and anyone else set to testify are off limits for the stump speeches and social media posts the Republican frontrunner has used to mobilize his supporters.

$15,000 in Fines

It also increases the risk of punishment for Trump should he violate the gag order — something he’s done during earlier trials — particularly in New York Attorney General Letitia James’ civil fraud lawsuit over his asset valuations. Last year, the Manhattan judge who presided over that case fined him $15,000 for twice violating a gag order he imposed to protect a law clerk.

James won the trial and Trump was hit a $454 million penalty, which he’s appealing. Trump has until April 4 to post a $175 million bond to put the verdict on hold while he challenges it.

Trump argued he has refrained from making inflammatory remarks about people involved in the hush money case. But Justice Merchan was “unpersuaded,” saying the former president undermined his argument one day earlier at a press conference, when Trump launched a personal attack on a prosecutor by claiming he was part of the “radical left.”.

Other witnesses in the case who’ve drawn Trump’s ire include Stormy Daniels, the porn star who Cohen paid $130,000 to keep quiet about her claim that she’d had an affair with Trump. Trump, who has pleaded not guilty, is accused of reimbursing Cohen in 2017 by falsely claiming the payments were for legal fees.

In early March, Merchan barred public disclosure of jurors’ names to protect them from any backlash over their role in the politically charged case.

‘Unfettered Responses’

Trump’s lawyers argued a gag order wasn’t necessary, calling the restriction unconstitutional and an unlawful restraint upon his free speech rights. They argued Bragg’s office was trying to muzzle Trump as he campaigns for reelection.

“The voters have the right to listen to President Trump’s unfettered responses to those attacks — not just one side of that debate,” defense lawyers Todd Blanche and Susan Necheles said.

In the hush-money case, Merchan last year warned Trump he could be barred from attending the trial if he “became disruptive.”

“I do have the authority to remove you from the courtroom and continue in your absence,” Merchan said at the time.

During a defamation trial in January in a suit brought by writer E. Jean Carroll, US District Judge Lewis Kaplan threatened to expel Trump after the former president loudly complained in court during Carroll’s testimony.

Manhattan prosecutors said they modeled their gag order on one upheld on appeal in the federal case against Trump over the 2020 election. In that case, Trump was banned from speaking about witnesses expected to testify. But Trump was still allowed to criticize Special Counsel Jack Smith, who indicted him, to describe the prosecution as a political vendetta and to criticize the Biden administration and the Justice Department.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Donald Trump urges Israel to ‘finish up’ Gaza offensive, warns about global support fading

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Former US President Donald Trump said he would have responded the same way as Israel did after the October 7 attack by Hamas but urged the country to “finish up” its offensive in Gaza and “get this over with”, warning about international support fading.

“You have to finish up your war. You have to finish it up. You’ve got to get it done,” he said in an interview with Israeli newspaper Israel Hayom. “We’ve got to get to peace. You can’t have this going on, and I will say Israel has to be very careful because you are losing a lot of the world. You are losing a lot of support.” Trump, who earlier this month became the Republican Party’s presumptive nominee, brought up global criticism of Israel’s offensive even as he has repeatedly attacked President Joe Biden’s handling of the conflict.

According to the newspaper’s transcript of the interview, Trump said “Israel made a very big mistake” in releasing photos and videos of its offensive in Gaza, commenting the country’s public image is “in ruin”. A video shared of the interview does not show those comments.

“That’s a terrible portrait. It’s a very bad picture for the world,” Trump said. “I think Israel wanted to show that it’s tough, but sometimes you shouldn’t be doing that.” The Israel Hayom is widely seen as a mouthpiece for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Soon after the attack in which Hamas militants killed 1,200 people and took 250 hostages, Trump denounced Netanyahu for allegedly letting him down while he was in the White House. He also said Netanyahu “was not prepared” for the deadly incursion from Gaza.

More than 30,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s offensive, according to the Health Ministry in the Hamas-ruled territory.

Trump also again suggested that American Jews were wrong to support Democrats, days after being criticised by some Jewish advocates for saying Jewish Democrats were being disloyal to their religion. He alleged that Biden “supports the enemy”.

Also Read: Israel cancels DC trip after US allows Gaza ceasefire resolution at UN

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow