The Facts
- A panel of three judges from the federal appeals court in Washington, DC heard arguments Monday regarding the gag order placed on former Pres. Donald Trump, limiting what he can say about the 2020 election-related case brought against him by special counsel Jack Smith.
- Trump's attorney, D. John Sauer, called the order "unprecedented," arguing that "it sets a terrible precedent for future restriction on core political speech."
- Meanwhile, the prosecution said Trump must be prohibited from making inflammatory comments against prosecutors and potential witnesses.
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The Spin
Democratic narrative
While the appeals court must be careful to not squelch political speech — or set a precedent for silencing future political speech — it must uphold this gag order. History has proven Trump isn't going to stop his outbursts, and he can't be granted the freedom to disrupt the proceedings this way. Luckily, there are legal mechanisms for establishing Trump's situation as unique without affecting future trials involving other individuals.
Pro-Trump narrative
This gag order is unconstitutional and is part of the continued political witch hunt against the former president. Leaving it up to three Democratic judges to decide whether Trump has the right to political speech is ridiculous, and that’s why even the left-wing American Civil Liberties Union is in his corner on this matter. Trump must be allowed to speak freely on the campaign trail.
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