Former President Donald Trump said he is willing to be jailed for violating the gag order in his New York hush-money trial for the sake of “our Constitution,” declaring it is “much more important than jail.”
Trump made the remarks while taking questions from reporters outside the Manhattan courthouse on another day of his criminal trial.
The former president has already been fined $10,000 for multiple violations of Judge Juan Merchan’s gag order, prohibiting him from talking about potential witnesses, jurors, court staff, attorneys, and the judge’s family during the trial.
Merchan told Trump he would “consider a jail sentence” if the former president violated the gag order again.
“The last thing I want to consider is jail. You are [the] former president and possibly the next president,” Merchan said.
“The magnitude of that decision is not lost on me,” he added.
“Your continued willful violation of the court’s order … constitutes a direct attack … and will not be allowed to continue.”
Following the conclusion of the court hearings, Trump discussed the gag order and Merchan’s threat of throwing him in jail.
“I have to watch every word I tell you people,” Trump said.
“You ask me a question, a simple question, I’d like to give [an answer], but I can’t talk about it. Because this judge is giving me a gag order and said you’ll go to jail if you violate it.”
“And frankly, you know what, our Constitution is much more important than jail,” Trump added. “It’s not even close. I’ll do that sacrifice any day.”
TRUMP: "This judge is giving me a gag order and said you'll go to jail if you violate it. And frankly, you know what, our Constitution is much more important than jail. It's not even close. I'll do that sacrifice any day." pic.twitter.com/qWjo0YBQPZ
— JM Rieger (@RiegerReport) May 6, 2024
Last week, Trump was fined $9,000 by Merchan after the judge spoke about people involved in the trial, mostly in posts on his social media platform Truth Social.
On Monday, he was also fined a further $1,000 for another Truth Social post.
“So, we just found out the government just said that they want two to three more weeks,” Trump said.
“That means they want to keep me off the trail for two to three more weeks,” Trump added.
“The judge is so happy about two to three more weeks because they all want to keep me off the campaign trail. That’s all this is about. This is about election interference.”
Trump faces 34 felony charges as Attorney Alvin Bragg alleges he falsified business records to cover up an alleged affair with porn actress Stormy Daniels.
Trump denies all of the charges, arguing he is the victim of a political “witch hunt.”
READ: Legal Expert Rips Alvin Bragg: Hillary Clinton Did Same ‘Crime’
