In a blunt rebuke to Donald Trump’s misinformation, Judge Juan Marchan dispelled any illusions on Friday, asserting Trump’s unfettered right to testify in his Manhattan hush money trial. This correction comes after Trump falsely claimed outside court that a gag order prevented him from taking the stand.
Trump’s misleading assertion, refuted by Justice Marchan, attempted to cloak his silence in legal constraints. But the judge’s words cut through the deception.
“I want to stress, Mr. Trump, that you have an absolute right to testify at trial, if that’s what you decide to do,” the judge said, noting his order applies to “statements that are made outside of court, it does not apply to statements made from the witness stand.”
“The order restricting extrajudicial statements does not prevent you from testifying in any way. It does not prohibit you from taking the stand and it does not limit or minimize what you can say,” the judge added.
Marchan’s clarity undercut Trump’s blatant attempt to manipulate the narrative in order to evade accountability.
The gag order, rightly imposed to uphold the integrity of the trial, bars Trump from tampering with the judicial process. Yet Trump’s repeated violations, evidenced by the $9,000 in sanctions imposed for breaching the order, reveal his disdain for legal boundaries.
The gravity of Trump’s charges looms large: 34 felonies alleging fraudulent manipulation of business records. At the heart of the allegations lie sordid details of hush money payments to silence damaging revelations, orchestrated in the lead-up to the 2016 election.
