Judge Juan Merchan has found Trump in contempt for violating his gag order and has fined Trump $1,000 for each violation, CNN reports.
The New York Times says Merchan wrote that he would not tolerate continued violations of his orders and that if necessary and appropriate, he would "impose an incarceratory sentence."
CNN notes Merchan lamented that Trump can't be fined more: "While $1,000 may suffice in most instances to protect the dignity of the judicial system…it unfortunately will not achieve the desired result in those instances where the contemnor can easily afford such a fine."
That's why he said "jail may be a necessary punishment."
Donald Trump has begun to remove the social media posts cited by Judge Juan Merchan in today's gag order ruling, ABC News reports.
"This gag order is totally unconstitutional. I'm the Republican candidate for president of the United States. I received this honor in record time. Nobody has ever gone faster… And I'm sitting in a court house all day long listening to this stuff." — Donald Trump, after his trial ended for the day.
"Donald Trump's Manhattan criminal trial had barely begun when he started to turn his anger toward his lead lawyer, Todd Blanche," the New York Times reports.
"Although Mr. Blanche has been Mr. Trump's favorite lawyer for some time, behind closed doors and in phone calls, the former president has complained repeatedly about him in recent weeks… He has griped that Mr. Blanche, a former federal prosecutor and veteran litigator, has not been following his instructions closely, and has been insufficiently aggressive. Mr. Trump wants him to attack witnesses, attack what the former president sees as a hostile jury pool, and attack the judge, Juan M. Merchan."
"Mr. Trump, who often complains about legal fees and sometimes refuses to pay them, has also wondered aloud why his lawyers cost so much."
"Nearly every lawyer who has ever represented Mr. Trump has spent time in the blast zone. But as he enters the third week of his first criminal trial — one that not only threatens his campaign to become president again, but also could send him to prison — the question of whether his lawyers can win enough leeway from his desires has never loomed larger."
"An appellate court has denied former President Trump's bid to have Judge Juan Merchan recused from his hush money trial," ABC News reports.
Donald Trump "appears to have fallen asleep while listening to testimony — at times appearing to stir and then falling back to sleep," NBC News reports. "Trump's eyes were closed for extended periods and his head has at times jerked in a way consistent with sleeping."
Donald Trump "has been sitting with his eyes closed for significant portions of testimony this morning," the New York Times reports. "It is unclear how the jurors, who have to sit through this same testimony, will feel about a defendant closing their eyes so much."
Stephen Robinson: Imagine if Joe Biden did this.
"Donald Trump's campaign immediately sought to capitalize after the judge in his New York criminal trial ruled him in contempt of court — the latest example of how the former president's campaign has flipped negative legal developments into a financial boost for his reelection bid," Politico reports.
From the email: "I was fined $9,000 for 9 gag order violations. THEY WANT TO SILENCE ME! They think they can BLEED ME DRY and SHUT ME UP, but I'll NEVER stop fighting for YOU."
"The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration will move to reclassify marijuana as a less dangerous drug, a historic shift to generations of American drug policy that could have wide ripple effects across the country," the AP reports.
"The DEA's proposal, which still must be reviewed by the White House Office of Management and Budget, would recognize the medical uses of cannabis and acknowledge it has less potential for abuse than some of the nation's most dangerous drugs. However, it would not legalize marijuana outright for recreational use."
Lawyers for Hunter Biden are telling Fox News to correct the record on bribery allegations made by a discredited FBI informant or face a defamation lawsuit, CNN reports.
Lawyers for Hunter Biden plan to sue Fox News "imminently," according to a letter sent to the network and obtained by NBC News.
The letter cites the network's alleged "conspiracy and subsequent actions to defame Mr. Biden and paint him in a false light, the unlicensed commercial exploitation of his image, name, and likeness, and the unlawful publication of hacked intimate images of him."
"Fox News appears to be taking Hunter Biden's lawsuit threat quite seriously," the Daily Beast reports.
"The network has quietly pulled down its six-part 'mock trial' series from its digital streaming service Fox Nation after lawyers for the presidential scion warned the network of their intention to sue for defamation."
"The scrubbing of the series, which debuted in October 2022, directly complies with the demand from Biden's legal team—powerhouse celebrity law firm Geragos & Geragos—to delete the content immediately."
"Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) is vowing to move ahead with a vote to oust Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), even after Democratic leaders said they would shield the Louisiana Republican from a conservative coup," The Hill reports.
Said Greene: "If the Democrats want to elect him Speaker (and some Republicans want to support the Democrats' chosen Speaker), I'll give them the chance to do it. I'm a big believer in recorded votes because putting Congress on record allows every American to see the truth and provides transparency to our votes."
She added: "Americans deserve to see the Uniparty on full display. I'm about to give them their coming out party!"
"The House Freedom Caucus is upset with Speaker Mike Johnson. Even furious," Punchbowl News reports.
"But the group of hardline Republican conservatives isn't signing onto Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene's (R-GA) call to oust Johnson. At least not yet."
Said Rep. Josh Breckenridge (R-OK): "I'm not convinced that if we go into a motion to vacate, we come out with a more conservative solution, so I think every person has to evaluate it."
Axios: GOP lawmakers say Marjorie Taylor Green's motion to vacate has fizzled.
House Democrats have officially stated that they will block any motion to vacate from Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) to attempt to oust Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA).
New York Times: "In an interview, Mr. Jeffries said his comment about coming to Mr. Johnson's rescue remains only an observation, and that Democrats would likely meet early this week to map their strategy. He said he had no knowledge of Greene's plans, but added that the fact that she is the one leading the rebellion probably works to Mr. Johnson's advantage."
Said Jeffries: "Mike Johnson doesn't need too many Democratic friends. She is one of the best things the speaker has going for him because so many people find her insufferable."
Louisiana Republicans pushed back votes on several bills that would have added exceptions to the state's near-total abortion ban, the New Orleans Times-Picayune reports.
"Donald Trump is playing down the prospect of nationwide abortion restrictions, falsely saying Republicans have long sought to leave abortion law to the states," NBC News reports.
"Trump's latest claim is belied by a long history of his party's fighting to restrict abortion nationally."
"In fact, it would come as news to then-President Trump, who in 2018 championed legislation in Congress to criminalize abortion nationwide after 20 weeks of pregnancy. At the time, he called a 20-week ban 'important legislation that would protect our most vulnerable' and said it was 'disappointing' that the bill failed to overcome a filibuster in the Senate."
Rep. Scott Perry (R-PA) "has been making a point lately of telling voters that he doesn't support a nationwide abortion ban," the HuffPost reports.
"But the Pennsylvania Republican is hoping nobody notices that he's signed on to legislation in Congress for the last seven years to impose a near-total nationwide abortion ban ― and he's still a cosponsor of this bill."
If there's anything about politics that Donald Trump understands, it's that abortion is a bad issue for him. The vast majority of the country supports abortion rights and Trump is responsible for taking those rights away from millions of women in a large swath of the country. Trump thinks that by saying "it's up to the states," he can absolve himself of any responsibility.
But when Time asked Trump how he would personally vote in the Florida referendum on a six-week abortion ban, he refused to say. Said Trump: "I don't tell you what I'm gonna vote for. I only tell you the state's gonna make a determination." When asked about women having access to abortion pills, Trump again punted with a familiar line: "I will be making a statement on that over the next 14 days."
That interview was conducted on April 12. On April 27, Time followed up asking if he had made come up with a position on abortion pills. Said Trump: "No, I haven't. I'll be doing it over the next week or two. But I don't think it will be shocking, frankly. But I'll be doing it over the next week or two. We're for helping women… I am for helping women."
Keep in mind that "leaving it to the states" is much more than just a dodge. It's actually backing the most extreme abortion policies that state lawmakers can come up with. "Leaving it to the states" means that you inherently back 6-week abortion bans that allow no exceptions, even for rape, incest or the life of the mother.
But Trump went even further in his Time interview agreeing that he would "let red states monitor women's pregnancies and prosecute those who violate abortion bans." Trump is not staking out some imaginary middle ground on abortion. He's actually saying he's fine with the most draconian bans.
"One America News, a right-wing cable news network, on Monday retracted a report claiming that Donald Trump's former fixer had been the person who actually had an affair with the porn star whose claims of a sexual relationship with Mr. Trump are key to his criminal trial," the New York Times reports.
"The retraction came after the fixer, Michael Cohen, hired a leading defamation lawyer to address the false report, which was posted on the network's website on March 27."
"As he awaits his turn to take the witness stand, Michael Cohen has discussed Donald Trump, the ongoing trial, and the testimony already underway during nightly livestreams on TikTok which appear to be earning him financial benefit through viewers' donations," ABC News reports.
"And while the undertaking doesn't appear to run afoul of any court order, experts say it hurts the already-blemished credibility of an essential witness in the case."
Sarah Matthews, a former staffer of Donald Trump, said Monday she would not cast her vote in November for her former boss, signaling she could instead vote for President Biden, The Hill reports.
Said Matthews: "When we have a candidate on the ballot who will not uphold the Constitution, then I feel like I have to put policy aside. And I wanna support the person who is best suited to defeat Donald Trump."
Donald Trump was interviewed by Eric Cortellessa of Time magazine:
TIME: Would you fire a U.S. attorney who didn't prosecute someone you ordered him to? Him or her?
TRUMP: It depends on the situation, honestly.
TIME: So you might?
TRUMP: It would depend on the situation. Yeah.
Donald Trump told Time he would have trouble hiring anyone who thinks Biden won the 2020 election: "I wouldn't feel good about it."
"I let them quit because I have a heart. I don't want to embarrass anybody. I don't think I'll do that again. From now on, I'll fire."— Donald Trump, in an interview with Time magazine, saying he was "too nice" to his former advisers. LOL. Bullshit. He is a coward and is famously afraid of direct confrontation.
Time: "What emerged in two interviews with Trump, and conversations with more than a dozen of his closest advisers and confidants, were the outlines of an imperial presidency that would reshape America and its role in the world."
"To carry out a deportation operation designed to remove more than 11 million people from the country, Trump told me, he would be willing to build migrant detention camps and deploy the U.S. military, both at the border and inland. He would let red states monitor women's pregnancies and prosecute those who violate abortion bans. He would, at his personal discretion, withhold funds appropriated by Congress, according to top advisers. He would be willing to fire a U.S. Attorney who doesn't carry out his order to prosecute someone, breaking with a tradition of independent law enforcement that dates from America's founding."
"He is weighing pardons for every one of his supporters accused of attacking the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, more than 800 of whom have pleaded guilty or been convicted by a jury. He might not come to the aid of an attacked ally in Europe or Asia if he felt that country wasn't paying enough for its own defense. He would gut the U.S. civil service, deploy the National Guard to American cities as he sees fit, close the White House pandemic-preparedness office, and staff his Administration with acolytes who back his false assertion that the 2020 election was stolen."
"The Biden campaign is mounting a concerted push to attack former President Donald J. Trump over statements he made to Time magazine in a wide-ranging interview published Tuesday morning, particularly on abortion," the New York Times reports.
"In the interview, Mr. Trump refused to commit to vetoing a national abortion ban and said he would allow states to monitor women's pregnancies and prosecute those who violated abortion restrictions."
Wrote Biden on X: "This is reprehensible. Donald Trump doesn't trust women. I do."
"Donald Trump, who is currently facing felony criminal charges in connection with Jan. 6, said that, if elected, he'd 'absolutely' consider pardoning every single one of the hundreds of criminals convicted in connection with the attack on the U.S. Capitol," NBC News reports.
"But Trump's campaign said such pardons would be 'on a case-by-case basis,' not the sort of blanket pardon Trump referred to in a recent interview with Time magazine."
Donald Trump in an interview did not shut down the potential for political violence after November's election if he doesn't win, saying "it depends" on the fairness of the vote, The Hill reports.
Said Trump: "Well, I do think we're gonna win. We're way ahead. I don't think they'll be able to do the things that they did the last time, which were horrible. Absolutely horrible."
He added: "And if we don't win, you know, it depends. It always depends on the fairness of an election. I don't believe they'll be able to do the things that they did the last time. I don't think they'll be able to get away with it. And if that's the case, we're gonna win in record-setting fashion."
"When a lawyer for former President Donald Trump argued before the Supreme Court last week that his client should be immune from charges of plotting to subvert the last election, he asked the justices to picture a world in which former presidents were ceaselessly pursued in the courts by their successors," the New York Times reports.
"What Mr. Sauer did not mention was that Mr. Trump has done as much as anyone to escalate the prospect of threatening political rivals with prosecution…"
"In effect, Mr. Trump has asked the Supreme Court to enforce a norm — that in the United States, public officials do not engage in tit-for-tat political prosecutions — that he has for years threatened to shatter. In promising to sic his Justice Department on Mr. Biden, Mr. Trump has laid the grounds for the very conditions that he was asking the justices to guard against by granting him immunity."
"The Supreme Court refused on Tuesday to block a Texas law that seeks to limit minors' access to pornography on the internet by requiring age verification measures like the submission of government-issued IDs," the New York Times reports.
"As is the court's custom in rulings on emergency applications, its brief order gave no reasons. There were no noted dissents. A petition seeking review of an appeals court's ruling upholding the law remains pending."
New York Times: "The reactions suggested that even as Republicans are waging an internal war over aiding Ukraine — one that is continuing even after the funding package cleared Congress and was signed into law — the issue is more divisive in their own ranks than it is among many of their constituents."
"Immediately after the vote last weekend, Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, the right-wing Republican who threatened to oust Mr. Johnson for allowing the vote, predicted that her colleagues who backed the measure would have hell to pay."
Puck: "On a brisk Friday evening earlier this month, David Sacks and Elon Musk convened a dozen or so of America's most powerful business leaders for dinner at Sacks' $23 million, 11,000-square-foot home in the Hollywood Hills. The dinner party, according to people familiar with the intimate gathering, comprised a veritable living room Milken conference: Michael Milken himself was there, in fact, as were billionaires Rupert Murdoch and Peter Thiel. A few government types, including Steven Mnuchin, scored invites. There were also some less politically active titans of industry, such as Uber co-founder and former CEO Travis Kalanick. But all were there as members of a burgeoning anti-Biden brain trust, united by a shared sense of grievance."
"The get-together, which hasn't been previously reported, is the latest evidence of Musk's growing power beyond Silicon Valley, as he's evolved from political hobbyist to media owner and conservative icon."
"Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pledged Tuesday to launch an incursion into the southern Gaza city of Rafah, where hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are sheltering from the almost 7-month-long war, as cease-fire negotiations between Israel and Hamas appear to be gaining steam," the AP reports.
"Netanyahu's comments came hours before U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrives in Israel to advance the truce talks — which appear to be one of the most serious rounds of negotiations between Israel and Hamas since the war began."
"Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu asked President Biden Sunday to help prevent the International Criminal Court from issuing arrest warrants for senior Israeli officials in connection with the war in Gaza," Axios reports.
"Secretary of State Antony Blinken launched an uphill push here Monday to pause the bitter conflict in the Gaza Strip as it takes a heavy toll on civilians, inflames anti-Israel sentiment in the U.S. and complicates President Biden's path to re-election," the Wall Street Journal reports.
"The White House's immediate goal is to secure a cease-fire that would delay an Israeli invasion of Rafah, the city in southern Gaza where more than a million displaced Palestinians are sheltering. The Israeli military says Rafah is the last bastion for Hamas battalions in the besieged territory."
Meanwhile, CNN reports U.S. efforts to get aid into Gaza continue.
"A coalition of lawyers domestic and abroad — including at least 20 that work in the Biden administration — are calling on President Joe Biden to halt military aid to Israel, arguing that its actions in Gaza do not comply with U.S. and international humanitarian law," Politico reports.
"They plan to send a letter arguing their case to Attorney General Merrick Garland and general counsels across the administration in the coming days."
"A new assessment from Amnesty International asserts that Israel has used U.S.-supplied weapons against Palestinian civilians in alleged violations of international law, a finding certain to inflame the heated debate about whether the United States should curtail support to its closest Middle Eastern ally," the Washington Post reports.
"The advocacy group's findings, following similar conclusions from an independent panel of experts and recent analysis from other civil society groups, were set to be disclosed later Monday as the Biden administration, under mounting scrutiny, faces a looming deadline for determining whether Israel has abided by the laws of war."
"The U.S. State Department has determined that five Israeli security units committed gross violations of human rights prior to the outbreak of the war with Hamas in Gaza, but is still deciding whether to restrict military assistance to one of the units under U.S. law," CNN reports.
"This is just straight out communist corruption. These people are massive crooks — the people in Arizona. They're despicable, anti-American traitors."— Rudy Giuliani, talking to Real America's Voice, about his new indictment in Arizona.
"The Supreme Court on Monday for a second time shot down a request from former Trump adviser Peter Navarro to avoid further prison time over his contempt of Congress conviction," CNN reports.
"The first text message Rep. Rudy Yakym (R., Ind.) sent after skydiving in January was to House Majority Whip Tom Emmer to tell him that he was OK—and that Republicans' ranks hadn't been further diminished," the Wall Street Journal reports.
Said Yakym in an email: "Don't worry, Tom. Your whip count is still safe."
"It was half jest, half reassurance. Yakym is among a group of adrenaline junkies in the Republican conference embracing extreme sports in their free time—which might make for fun office chatter if the GOP didn't have a razor-thin 217-212 majority in the House."
"Saudi Arabia has decided to normalize relations with Israel, but is debating whether to implement the move in the coming weeks or after the presidential election in the United States in November," Haaretz reports.
Said one foreign diplomat: "The Saudis are considering whether an agreement with Israel, assuming its demands are met, will not be seen as aiding Biden's political campaign, which could damage relations with the next president."
"Germany's far-right Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) has gone from the political fringes to the mainstream in recent years, consistently polling in the top three parties in the country," CNBC reports.
"And data shows that younger voters now play a major role in the party's growth."
"Chinese President Xi Jinping is heading to the European Union for the first time in five years with a clear message: Beijing offers much more of an economic opportunity for the bloc than the U.S. wants to admit," Bloomberg reports.
"The Chinese leader will begin his five-day trip to France, Serbia and Hungary on May 5, according to the Foreign Ministry in Beijing. Those nations are seeking investment from China, despite a litany of EU probes into Beijing's industrial policy and the warnings from officials in Washington about the risks."
"Rishi Sunak urged Conservative Party faithful in a pre-election speech to take part in 'the greatest comeback in political history,' a tacit admission of the long odds the prime minister faces in local votes across England this week," Bloomberg reports.
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