Trump Attorney Gags All Over Gag Order Hearing
Todd Blanche goes full Lionel Hutz while trying to defend Donald Trump reposting statements that would violate the gag order.
Todd Blanche and Donald Trump (Photo by Brendan McDermid-Pool/Getty Images)
In the latest Am Law 100, Cadwalader boasts a whopping $3 million profit per partner figure. We only mention that to note that Todd Blanche gave all that up to stand in a freezing (and curiously malodorous) New York courtroom getting absolutely roasted by Justice Juan Merchan over Donald Trump’s clever-yet-not-at-all-clever theory that he can keep violating the gag order so long as he does it through retweets. Or “ReTruths” as they’re comically though unironically named on his personal social media platform.
All of that to eventually get stiffed. Brilliant strategy, sir!
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Before Trump’s hush money trial could kick off for the morning, the court heard argument on the DA’s claim that Trump has repeatedly violated the court’s gag order. As you might recall, the gag order prevented Trump from, inter alia, “making or directing others to make public statements about known or reasonably foreseeable witnesses concerning their potential participation….”
How’s that going?
He was also directed not to be “Making or directing others to make public statements about any prospective juror or any juror in this criminal proceeding.”
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And…
Swing and a miss.
Blanche stood up this morning to argue that Trump just fell astray of ambiguities in the order.
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Tactical. Genius.
Unfortunately for Blanche, the court had some common sense observations of its own — specifically when it came to the idea that retruthing isn’t an endorsement — noting that hitting that button “is not passive conduct.” Undeterred, Blanche continued trying to sell Trump blasting out Jesse Watters gibberish as a mere RT without endorsement when Merchan noticed…
I haven’t seen a Blanche f**ked like that since the Golden Girls went off the air.
For the record, the “manipulation” they’re referring to is the fact that Watters didn’t actually say “to get on the Trump jury.” So he typed it all out, used the shift-key, and added his own brain droppings.
Merchan informed the parties that he would rule on the motion after court concludes for the day, offering Blanche just enough time to think about what he could be doing with $3 million dollars that wouldn’t involve becoming a national laughingstock.
Earlier: Trump Lawyers: RTs Aren’t Endorsements, So, No Contempt, Your Honor!
Biglaw Partner Leaves Firm To Represent Donald Trump In Criminal Case
Joe Patrice is a senior editor at Above the Law and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. Feel free to email any tips, questions, or comments. Follow him on Twitter if you’re interested in law, politics, and a healthy dose of college sports news. Joe also serves as a Managing Director at RPN Executive Search.
