Did Trump Already Violate the Terms of His Release?
In under 24 hours, it appears that Donald Trump may have violated the terms of his release, following his arrest and arraignment at Prettyman Courthouse in Washington, D.C.
In back-to-back posts on his social media network, the disgraced, thrice indicted ex-president threatened prosecutors, witnesses, future jurors and anyone who dare to go against him.
In a post made Friday at 3:35pm ET, Trump published an ominous attack ad dubbing Fulton County DA Fani Willis, Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg, New York AG Letitia James, and Special Counsel Jack Smith "unscrupulous accomplices" of President Biden. The ad finishes by labeling the prosecutors and the president "the fraud squad."
Roughly 40 minutes later, Trump warned in all caps, "IF YOU GO AFTER ME, I'M COMING AFTER YOU!"
Federal Magistrate Judge Moxila A. Upadhyaya was very clear with Donald Trump during his arraignment on Thursday regarding the terms of his release.
Under oath, Trump swore that he would not attempt to influence or intimidate witnesses, retaliate against anyone, or in any other way attempt to obstruct the administration of justice.
The magistrate judge asked, "Are you prepared to comply?"
Trump simply responded, "Yes."
The judge told Trump that should he violate the conditions of his release, she would consider sending him to jail pending trial.
"You have heard your conditions of release. It is important you comply. You may be held pending trial in this case if you violate the conditions of release," the magistrate judge warned.
Legal experts and former prosecutors have begun to chime in regarding how the judge that the Justice Department should respond to Trump's threats.
Former DOJ prosecutor Andrew Weissmann notes, "This is the kind of thing that DOJ alerts the court to with respect to any defendant out on bail (in this case, in 3 criminal cases, and also is a threat in civil cases like E Jean Carroll). Not addressing this will only cause it to metastasize with undue deadly risks."
National Security Lawyer Bradley Moss shared a different perspective. "Needs to be more direct and specific beyond hyperbole. DOJ will likely hold its fire for now," he tweeted.
This is far from the first time Trump has wielded his social media app to make threats relating to his criminal prosecutions.
Back in March, Trump threatened there would be "death and destruction" if he were to be criminally charged by Alvin Bragg. He was, and there was not.
He also posted a photo of himself holding a baseball bat next to a photo on the Manhattan DA.
There are numerous other examples of Donald Trump threatening those who speak out against him. From Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss, to Jack Smith's wife and family members, the list is endless and warrants its own story.
For now, we'll wait and see what action the DOJ and Judge Chutkan takes, if any.
**UPDATE** On Friday evening, Special Counsel Jack Smith filed a motion for a protective order based on Donald Trump’s threatening social media posts.
You can read the filing below:
