TROUBLE: Donald Attacks Judge

What you need to know

OUTRAGEOUS: Donald personally attacks the judge presiding over the E. Jean Carroll trial. A lawyer told me Donald could end up in jail. Read on.👇

Tonight, Donald’s attorneys have asked for a mistrial in the E. Jean Carroll case. It’s a gutsy—or desperate—move considering Judge Kaplan already declined their identical request last week.

This lack of respect for the court is a pattern. Donald, who already has TWO active gag orders against him in his NYC fraud trial and the January 6th case, just tested the limits of his conduct and the behavior of his attorneys in his civil defamation trial, too.

Appearing after his legal team’s disastrous performance, Donald tore into Judge Lewis Kaplan and personally attacked him for not delaying the trial for his mother-in-law’s funeral. First of all, Donald’s attendance at the trial was optional (he did not appear at the first defamation trial) and, second, instead of being with his family all week, he’s been on the campaign trail:

“He's a nasty judge,” Donald said. “He's a Trump-hating guy, and, uh, it's obvious to everybody in the court. It's a disgrace, frankly, what's happening. It’s a disgrace.”

Donald un-gagged

Donald’s courtroom behavior has been so bad, Judge Kaplan threatened to have him removed after he reportedly muttered complaints about the trial in earshot of the jury. In response, Donald tossed his hands up in the air exclaiming he’d “love” it if the Kaplan threw him out. When Kaplan asked Donald “you just can't help yourself under the circumstances, can you?” Donald reportedly responded, “you can't either.”

Donald is playing with fire

Palm Beach County State Attorney Dave Aronberg appeared on MSNBC's "Way Too Early," and actually compared Donald’s failure to control himself in the courtroom to the sinking of the Titanic.

"Yesterday was a disaster for Trump as a defendant," Aronberg said. "I would liken him to the Titanic but at least the Titanic had a band.”

Civil trials are different

For Donald’s criminal trials, he might be given a little more latitude to act out. As Danny Cevallos, an NBC News legal analyst, explained, “a criminal defendant has a right to be present at all proceedings,” Cevallos said. "So any time a judge removes a defendant in a criminal case, the judge has to consider some very important constitutional issues in the possibility that the case could get overturned."

But E. Jean Carroll’s case is a civil suit — and Donald is marching toward penalties.

Donald is heading into trouble

I asked attorney Joe Gallina to predict what might happen next, and here’s what he told me:

“I think Donald is using his appearance at court to speak to his base. He’s playing the victim, which works well with them, while attempting to malign the judge, intimidate E. Jean Carroll, and undermine the accusations by claiming it’s all a political ‘witch hunt.’ Sure he’ll score some political points, but he’s really damaging his case,” Gallina said.

“That puts Donald in an impossible position. The more he attempts to appease his base, the more he’ll turn off the jury,” Gallina added.

“In fact, I predict after witnessing the way Trump and his legal team have acted, the jury could award E. Jean Carroll a significantly higher amount than the original $5 million verdict— and it’s likely,” Gallina said.

“There are also a host of punishments available to Judge Kaplan to apply to Donald if he continues to act out. It stands to reason we’ll hear a description of what those might be of. Donald could face fines and even be thrown in jail for contempt if he ignores repeated warnings,” Gallina concluded.

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I’ll be watching this case and I’ll update you every step of the way. If a jury does find Donald liable for additional and substantial damages — or if Judge Kaplan hands down a penalty commensurate with what Donald deserves, I’ll be on it.

What happens now

I am officially launching a nationwide campaign against Donald’s candidacy, and I will focus on motivating crucial swing state voters by helping them understand what’s at stake in 2024.

It’s not hyperbole to say 2024 will be the most important election of our lifetimes. We already have the winning 2020 playbook, but we need to go even further. Everything is on the line.

I’ll use this platform and a combination of strategies all across the country to energize our base in 2024. My only mission this year is to stop Donald from destroying our democracy. We must do that together.

If you support me, please become a paying supporter now and help me reach even more swing state voters with the truth. 👇

THANK YOU for your support, and for being with me on this journey! Let's make sure Donald never sets foot in the White House again.

– Mary

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