Topline
Former President Donald Trump ripped into Manhattan Judge Juan Merchan on Tuesday, amping up his attacks on the jurist a day after he ruled Trump’s “hush money” case will go to trial April 15—and reprising his use of the “Stop the Steal” rallying cry Trump and his supporters deployed to claim he is the true winner of the 2020 presidential election.
Key Facts
Trump renewed his call for Merchan to recuse himself and for the trial to be moved to Staten Island, the only New York City borough that voted for him in the 2020 presidential election, alleging Merchan and the prosecutor bringing the case, District Attorney Alvin Bragg, are beholden to Democrats.
Trump suggested that Merchan is unable to be impartial, in part, because Merchan’s daughter worked as an executive at a progressive political consulting firm, Authentic Campaigns, which counts President Joe Biden as a client, according to its website.
Merchan is “a true and certified Trump Hater who suffers from a very serious case of Trump Derangement Syndrome,” Trump wrote, adding that his trial “should not be allowed to start in the middle” of his campaign and that it should be moved to Staten Island.
Trump also attacked Bragg, claiming, without evidence, that Bragg “never wanted” to bring the case against Trump but was influenced by one of his prosecutors, Matthew Colangelo, who previously worked in New York Attorney General Letitia James’ office and the Department of Justice, to move forward.
Shortly after Bragg took office in 2022, the investigation into Trump’s finances, which Bragg inherited from his predecessor, hit a snag as Bragg questioned its strength, prompting resignations of some of the top prosecutors working on the case, including Mark Pomerantz, who has become a target for Trump as he’s spoken openly about his disagreement with Bragg over when to bring charges.
Trump ended his rant against Bragg by reprising the controversial “STOP THE STEAL” rallying cry he used in the wake of his 2020 election loss, suggesting his prosecution will improve Biden’s chances of being re-elected and amounts to election interference.
Surprising Fact
Facebook removed posts containing “stop the steal” in the aftermath of Jan. 6 and the lead up to Biden’s inauguration, citing the risk that the baseless claim Trump was the true winner of the 2020 election could lead to additional violence from his supporters.
Key Background
Trump has repeatedly attacked the judges, prosecutors and court staff involved in his various criminal and civil cases, leading to a gag order prohibiting him from making disparaging public statements about court staff in his civil fraud trial. Trump has turned his ire toward Merchan as his case—charging him with falsifying business records to cover up “hush money” payments made to porn star Stormy Daniels—is set to go to trial on April 15, Merchan ruled Monday, denying Trump’s request to throw out the charges. Trump also attacked Merchan last year for his work overseeing tax fraud cases against the Trump Organization while he worked as an assistant district attorney in Manhattan. In a separate civil fraud case, Trump reposted a call last year for a New York judge to face citizen’s arrest.
What To Watch For
Trump told reporters Monday he would appeal Merchan’s decision to dismiss the charges against him. Trump faces 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in the case, which stems from allegations he reimbursed his former attorney Michael Cohen for a $130,000 payment Cohen made to Daniels in exchange for her silence about an affair she allegedly had with Trump in 2006. The case would be the first of Trump’s four criminal indictments to go to trial.
