Thrice indicted former President Donald Trump is under fire again, this time for posting ominous threats on his pathetic Truth Social site. Trump, who inexplicably remains the leading Republican candidate for president, posted, “IF YOU GO AFTER ME, I’M COMING AFTER YOU!” in response to the avalanche of charges against him. Prosecutors reacted to his post by asking U.S. District Court Judge Tanya Chutkan for a protective order against Trump.
This order specifically would limit what Trump and his team could share publicly regarding discovery evidence, information about witnesses, etc. It is important to note that these orders are common in criminal cases, and prosecutors highlighted Trump’s outlandish behavior as the reason for the order.
The defense team will be receiving a lot of evidence which, if disseminated, could have a devastating impact on potential witnesses and their safety. The judge has given Trump’s team until 5 p.m. Monday to respond, though his team asked for this date to be pushed back to Thursday. Trump’s lawyers also referred to his threatening post as “the definition of political speech.” Judge Chutkan quickly denied their request for an extension.
It appears that Trump’s allies already have their messaging in sync, claiming any condemnation against Trump is an assault on freedom of speech. This is NOT the case. We already saw that the most recent indictment against Trump was focused on his deceitful and illegal CONDUCT, not solely on speech. We know, however, that many Americans aren’t privy to the often blurred lines between speech and conduct, and what is legal vs. what is not. Republicans want to keep Americans uninformed, which aligns with their obsession with infiltrating the education system, banning books, and more. Ignorance helps cultivate a blind following which Trump has relied on for his political success. This is why taking action against Trump remains so critical to protecting democracy.
It’s more clear than ever that Trump is a threat to national security. As President, he had access to highly classified information, which can be deadly in the hands of a man who has zero integrity or morals. Post-presidency, Trump continues to show that he does not care about the law or national security. The January 6 insurrection was the most obvious and disgusting display of cult-like mentality and its dangers, but I fear that could only be the beginning.
Trump’s post was clearly a threat. Of course, he and his team can say it is just political speech, but what else could Trump have meant by “I’m coming after you?” He could have meant that he would ruin their political careers, or that he would send people to physically harm them. How do we know? People died because of January 6. Nancy Pelosi’s husband was attacked in their home. And intelligence officials are thwarting right-wing attempts at violence all the time. Trump’s lack of character is not just a political flaw; he is a threat to our security as a country. We cannot let his followers and accomplices gaslight us into thinking that he should get off because of “speech.” He must be contained, and a protective order is a great step to silencing his threats.
(via AP News, featured image: Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)
