Subscribe to The Trump Trials, a weekly newsletter chronicling Trump’s 4 felon cases
The former president then told the story of a U. S. operation in 2020 that killed Gen. Qasem Soleimani, head of Iran’s Quds Force. Trump claimed that Israel was a vital partner in this effort, but withdrew at the last minute. “We had everything planned out” and the night before it happened, they called me to inform me that Israel would not participate in this attack,” Trump said. “No one has heard this story before, but I’d like to tell it to Club 47. because you’ve been so unwavering and beautiful. “
A former intelligence official who worked under Trump’s direction reacted with dismay when he was briefed on Trump’s comments. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive issues, said the former president spoke of classified data when the former official was in the government.
In his speech, Trump defended himself against the fees in the classified documents case, saying, “I can do whatever I want, but I haven’t done anything wrong. “
It was far from the first time Trump had made such claims, claiming that the Presidential Records Act protected him from prosecution — a claim that several national security lawyers have called false.
Regardless of whether Trump’s story about Soleimani is true or not, those comments can easily be used by prosecutors at trial to show Trump’s intentions and mindset, and prove to the jury that, even after his indictment, the former president is showing a national protection plan. safety. Secrets.
Lawyers have said that such public statements are deeply damaging to his defense, as he appears to admit, in videos, to specific elements of the crimes he is accused of committing.
“Trump’s public statements tremendously erode his defenses,” said Ty Cobb, who served as the White House representative in the Trump administration but has an outspoken public critic of the former president. “We traded between ‘had the power’ with the classified documents and ‘There was a process’ — or ownership of the classified documents is recognized. “
Cobb also pointed to a self-deprecating claim made through Trump shortly after his indictment. He said an alleged incident involving a classified document about Iran never happened, only for a recording of the verbal exchange to be revealed and a criminal to be reported. That express document added to his indictment.
“Lying about this is irrefutable evidence of guilt consciousness,” Cobb said. “Prosecutors can broadcast this excerpt every day if they wish, and they will broadcast this excerpt as well as other interviews at will. He confessed publicly: perhaps unknowingly, to virtually every single detail of the Mar a Lago case. . . Everything he says hurts him. “
Asked for comment, Trump spokesman Steven Cheung said he and his lawyers are “fighting together, in the courtroom and in the court of public opinion,” against what they accuse of leaks from the Biden administration and politically motivated prosecutions.
Trump also makes statements about the 2020 election that could one day be used against him in court.
In the federal obstruction case filed in Washington, Trump is accused of deliberately lying about the 2020 vote count, even after learning that his allegations of massive fraud were false and the only lies he must investigate to save Joe Biden from being president.
In an interview with NBC’s “Meet The Press” last month, Trump laid out a key defense strategy his lawyers have discussed in the case: fighting election effects based on his lawyers’ recommendation.
Trump said in the interview that he only had the election stolen from him. “It was my decision,” the former president said, although he acknowledged that he had also listened to the lawyers. “Do you know who I am?” I’m listening? I saw what happened.
Such public statements have frustrated some of Trump’s advisers and lawyers, according to a user familiar with the internal conversations who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss them. Some lawyers and advisers take the former president into consideration to sabotage his defense, even as he insists he knows how to fight multiple legal battles, the user said.
A user close to Trump said his legal team never suggested he not post on social media, but admitted that some of the former president’s posts confused his legal instances and the ability of lawyers to do their jobs. That user said Trump’s lawyers understood that he had to hit back publicly because he ran for president.
Trump has already been hit with strict silence through a ruling handed down in New York over the oversight of a civil fraud lawsuit accusing Trump of vastly inflating the price of his business holdings. On Monday, U. S. District Judge Tanya S. Chutkan, who is overseeing Trump’s ongoing election obstruction trial in Washington: a broader gag order to prevent him from intimidating witnesses or bribing the jury in the case.
Trump’s lawyers plan to argue at the hearing that such action through Chutkan would violate Trump’s constitutional rights, restricting a presidential candidate’s speech.
Far from treating the fees of criminals who oppose him as a liability, Trump has publicly embraced the issue, launching fundraisers that use the indictments as a rallying cry for donations. His advisers say virtual presentations mentioning the allegations are more effective than other topics, and Trump has noticed how vigorously his crowds react to his speeches when he talks about prosecutors prosecuting him in Washington, Florida, Georgia and New York.
One adviser, who, like others, spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss domestic strategy, said the allegations had helped Trump solve a political problem: Small donors weren’t giving as much as in the past, and some insights were showing a drop. Enthusiasm for his candidacy.
Trump’s political strategy is to attack prosecutors and portray himself as a victim, while his legal strategy is to delay trials for as long as imaginable, if possible until after the election, aides said. He regularly doesn’t seek prior approval from his lawyers for his social media posts, and lawyers who occasionally find out what he’s saying at the same time as the rest of the public, according to advisers.
When lawyers suggested to Trump that he allow them to fight in court, the former president argued that it was mandatory to fight in the court of public opinion. For decades, Trump has lived his life, he says, successfully, making incendiary statements and attacking his critics.
How 91 Charges Bolstered Donald Trump’s Standing in the Republican Party
A former Trump lawyer said that during the investigation into possible Russian interference in the 2016 election, the president’s lawyers suggested to him during an Oval Office meeting that he not tweet about Robert S. Mueller III or the investigation itself. As they walked down Executive Drive to leave the White House, their phones vibrated with a tweet from Trump defying the lawyers’ request.
In theory, silence could disrupt what has been a successful crusade strategy for Trump.
But if prosecutors comply with their wish and succeed in preventing the former president from speaking out about witnesses, evidence or the courts, they may suffer as well, legal experts say.
“I understand why prosecutors seek silence, but they’re kind of careful what they want, because every time the guy opens his mouth, it turns out he’s digging a deeper hole for himself,” Jim Walden said. a lawyer and former federal prosecutor in New York, who is skeptical about the efficacy of a gag order against Trump.
In most cases, the sheer risk of a gag order would prevent the defendant or his or her attorney from making competing public comments on the case, in part because judges can jail or fine others who violate court orders.
But in Trump’s situation, his prestige as a prominent political candidate and his repeated efforts to try to characterize the criminal charges against him as unjust punishment for exercising a relaxed discourse make the silence factor a politically and legally charged proposition.
“No gag order is going to stop him, nobody’s really going to put him in prison that time, so a gag order is at best a useless tool to silence him,” Walden said.
Cheung, Trump’s spokesman, said the gag orders would further restrict his constitutional rights. “We are making plans for additional moves to silence President Trump and tip the scales of justice in his favor as his lead in the polls grows stronger by the day. They don’t accept as truth with Americans that other people make their own decisions, unlike us. “
Chutkan has different characteristics than a gag order with the risk of imprisonment if Trump does not comply. He can simply subpoena Trump in court and reprimand him directly, subject him to mounting fines if he proves a violation, or risk moving forward his trial.
It is scheduled to begin in March, a day before the busiest presidential celebration of the year.
Isaac Arnsdorf contributed to this report.
The fees: Former President Donald Trump has pleaded guilty to fees he planned to overturn the 2020 election in the run-up to the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U. S. Capitol. Here’s a look at the fees opposing Trump and what they mean, as well as what emerges from Trump’s indictment. Read the full text of the 45-page indictment.
The Trial: The jury variety in the Washington criminal trial is set to begin Feb. 9 and the trial is scheduled to begin March 4. U. S. District Judge Tanya S. Chutkan imposed a gag order over Trump’s public statements ahead of the trial.
The case: The special counsel is investigating whether Trump or his associates broke the law by interfering with the lawful movement of force after the 2020 presidential election or with Congress’ confirmation of the effects on Jan. 6, 2021. of several ongoing investigations involving Trump.
Can Trump still run for president? While it has never before been attempted through a primary party candidate, Trump is allowed to run for president if he is indicted in 4 separate cases, or even if he is convicted of a felony. Here’s how Trump’s impeachment can affect only the 2024 election.