Former federal prosecutor Andrew Weissmann said Donald Trump is “playing with fire” with his “right to the line” rhetoric after being hit with a gag order in his 2020 election subversion case in Washington.
U.S. District Court Judge Tanya Chutkan on Monday banned the former president from targeting prosecutors, possible witnesses and court staff with his inflammatory and menacing statements.
On Wednesday, MSNBC’s Alex Wagner suggested to Weissmann that Republican 2024 front-runner Trump will violate the order “at some time.”
If Trump does violate the order, said Weissmann, the punishment will depend on just how he does it.
“If he were to name and threaten a witness or a family member, if he were to say the kinds of things he’d said with respect to Mark Milley, you can imagine the district judge coming down very hard,” said Weismann.
“And when I mean very hard, I don’t mean fines,” said Weissmann. “I mean, that’s the kind of thing he could imagine a judge taking that so seriously.”
Less egregious attacks, however, could end with an admonishment of Trump, a warning to his lawyers or a financial penalty, he added.