Movies
Prosecutors stop short of seeking jail time for Trump — but say he’s ‘angling’ for it
Prosecutors in Donald Trump's hush money trial said the former president violated a gag order 10 times, but they did not seek jail time as a sanction.
During a Tuesday morning hearing, Assistant District Attorney Chris Conroy explained how Trump had attacked jurors, prospective jurors, and potential witnesses.
“What happened here is precisely what this order was designed to prevent, and the defendant doesn't care,” Conroy explained. “We are not yet seeking an incarceratory penalty, yet the defendant seems to be angling for that."
ALSO READ: A neuroscientist reveals how Trump and Biden's cognitive impairments are different
Trump's attorney, Todd Blanche, appeared to be defiant.
"Just to set the record very straight and clear: Pres. Trump does, in fact, know what the gag order allows him to do and not allow him to do," Blanche told New York Justice Juan Merchan.
It was not clear when Merchan would rule on the violations.
‘You’re not giving me an answer’: Judge loses his patience with Trump lawyer
From inside the courtroom on Tuesday, MSNBC legal analyst Lisa Rubin revealed that Judge Juan Merchan was "losing his patience" with Donald Trump's lawyer Todd Blanche.
In a testy morning hearing into whether Trump has violated a gag order put in place to stop him attacking members of the jury and witnesses, the judge reamed off examples of attacks — with likely witnesses in his targets including Michael Cohen and Stormy Daniels, among others.
Blanche, meanwhile, tried to explain away Trump's actions.
Rubin explained from the courtroom that the judge asked Blanche to give him an example of Trump's intentions in one of his posts, and he consistently failed to do so, leading Merchan to react.
"Judge Merchan is losing his patience," MSNBC's Vaughn Hillyard said, reading text messages from Rubin. Merchan is "accusing Blanche of not answering his questions. So we're just three social media posts through the ten, and Judge Merchan is clearly frustrated with the attorney for Donald Trump's lack of ability to articulate on behalf of his own client his intention with those social media statements."
ALSO READ: A neuroscientist explains how Trump is using existential fear to win the election
"I am asking a question," Merchan said, according to Rubin. "I keep asking you over and over to give me an example, and I'm not getting an answer."
Merchan went on to say that it was 10:30 a.m., and they'd been debating "for an hour now, and he's looking for an answer."
See the report below or at the link here.
'You’re not giving me an answer': Judge loses his patience with Trump lawyer youtu.be
‘Hypocritical’ Mitch McConnell blasted after fit about ‘ignoring’ Senate procedure
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) complained that Democrats had ignored Senate procedures after they voted down two articles of impeachment against Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.
In a vote along party lines, Democrats managed to table the two articles of impeachment. Republicans cried foul because the move circumvented a Senate trial.
"We've set a very unfortunate precedent here," McConnell said following the vote. "This means that the Senate can ignore, in effect, the House's impeachment."
"And by doing what we just did, we have, in effect, ignored the directions of the House, which were to have a trial," he added. "No evidence, no procedure, this is a day that's not a proud day in the history of the Senate."
In a move that broke Senate precedent, then-Majority Leader McConnell refused to grant a hearing to Merrick Garland, President Barack Obama's nominee for the Supreme Court in 2016. The decision marked a significant shift in the handling of Supreme Court nominations.
ALSO READ: Revealed: What government officials privately shared about Trump not disclosing finances
In August 2016, McConnell expressed pride in blocking Obama's nominee, a sentiment echoed by the 11 Republican members of the Senate Judiciary Committee who also opposed any proceedings for Garland.
"One of my proudest moments was when I looked Barack Obama in the eye and I said, 'Mr. President, you will not fill the Supreme Court vacancy,'" McConnell said in a speech at the time.
Critics called the minority leader hypocritical after his remarks on Wednesday.
"Isn't Mitch McConnell being rather hypocritical in saying the Senate should have respected the wishes of the House for an impeachment trial?" Ben McCrory asked on X (formerly Twitter).
"McConnell can shove it on precedence and the institution. He’s done enough to break that body and this country," another commenter wrote.
