Judge Hits Trump With Gag Order in Stormy Daniels Case

Donald Trump was hit Tuesday with another gag order, this time in the New York City "hush money" case involving adult film actress Stormy Daniels, which is set to go to trial next month.

Under the order, Trump cannot make public comments about prosecutors, witnesses or jurors in the case or their families.

The Context

In the first of the four criminal indictments leveled against him last year, Trump is facing charges in Manhattan that he falsified business records to conceal "hush money" payment to Daniels in exchange for her not speaking before the 2016 election about an affair the two allegedly had in 2006. Trump has pleaded not guilty to the charges and denies that an affair took place.

The grand jury indictment came as the result of an investigation by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg.

What We Know

On Tuesday, Judge Juan Merchan, who has been overseeing the case, authorized the gag order against Trump, barring him from making public statements about individuals involved in the case.

This order came soon after Trump took to his social media platform, Truth Social, to attack both Merchan and his daughter.

"Judge Juan Merchan, a very distinguished looking man, is nevertheless a true and certified Trump Hater who suffers from a very serious case of Trump Derangement Syndrome," he wrote in the post.

"In other words, he hates me! His daughter is a senior executive at a Super Liberal Democrat firm that works for Adam 'Shifty' Schiff, the Democrat National Committee, (Dem)Senate Majority PAC, and even Crooked Joe Biden," Trump said.

Trump demanded that Merchan recuse himself from the case, arguing that he cannot oversee a fair trial.

Views

A spokesman for Trump decried the new gag order and argued that it violates his First Amendment rights, as his associates have.

"Judge Merchan's unconstitutional gag order prevents President Trump—the leading candidate for president of the United States—from engaging in core political speech, which is entitled to the highest level of protection under the First Amendment," the spokesman told Newsweek in a statement.

"Worst of all, the gag order violates the civil rights of over 100 million Americans who follow President Trump and have a First Amendment right to receive and listen to his speech. American voters have a fundamental right to hear the uncensored voice of the leading candidate for the highest office in the land. President Trump will keep fighting for our country and our Constitution," the statement said.

By contrast, Michael Cohen, a former lawyer and "fixer" for Trump who was involved in making the payment to Daniels, hailed Merchan's decision.

"I want to thank Judge Merchan for imposing the gag order as I have been under relentless assault from Donald's MAGA supporters," Cohen told Newsweek. "Nevertheless, knowing Donald as well as I do, he will seek to defy the gag order by employing others within his circle to do his bidding, regardless of consequence."

What Comes Next

While considered by many legal experts to be the least significant of the criminal indictments against the ex-president, the hush money case is the first to go to trial, which is set for April 15.

Update 3/26/24, 3:55 p.m. ET: This story was updated with additional background and information.

Update 3/26/24, 4:20 p.m. ET: This story was updated with comments from Donald Trump's office and Michael Cohen, his former attorney.