1. Trump’s new hush-money gag order prohibits him from making statements against witnesses, jurors, and court staff.
2. The gag order does not prevent Trump from speaking out against the judge or his daughter, who works for a Democratic political consulting firm, leading to Trump exploiting this loophole on Truth Social.
3. Trump has raged against the judge, his daughter, and the District Attorney involved in the hush-money case, as well as their family members, despite the gag order.
Trump issued a new hush-money gag order that prohibits him from making statements against witnesses, jurors, and court staff, but does not mention the judge or his daughter. Following the order, Trump utilized a loophole to target State Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan and his daughter, Loren Merchan, who is a Democratic political consultant. Loren has been critical of Trump in the past on social media, leading to her becoming a target of Trump’s ire.
Trump has previously demanded that Judge Merchan recuse himself from the case due to his daughter’s political affiliations, but the judge declined. Trump has referred to the judge as a “certified Trump Hater” and criticized his daughter’s affiliation with a liberal consulting firm. The gag order also prevents Trump from making statements about the District Attorney’s staff or their relatives.
Far-right activist Laura Loomer posted on a social media platform that Loren Merchan had an image of Trump behind bars as her profile picture, further fueling Trump’s attacks. The judge and his daughter did not respond to requests for comment, and a lawyer for Trump declined to comment on the matter. The DA, Alvin Bragg, who is prosecuting the hush-money case, has also been targeted by Trump in the past. A spokeswoman for Bragg declined to comment on Trump’s attacks.