A new report that former President Donald Trump intends to sue the judge in his Manhattan hush money case has been met online with harsh criticism on social media.
The New York Times, citing court records that had not yet been made public, reported that Trump was moving to file an “Article 78 action” against Judge Juan Merchan, who is overseeing his Manhattan criminal trial. The action is specific to New York State law and allows individuals to challenge judges, and government agencies.
Newsweek reached out to Trump’s office via email on Monday afternoon for comment.
Trump is facing criminal charges from Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office surrounding allegations that the former president illegally falsified business records in order to conceal alleged payments made to adult film star Stormy Daniels to keep her quiet about an affair she says they had in 2006. Trump has denied the affair happened and pleaded not guilty to the charges against him.
While some legal experts have called the Manhattan case the least notable of Trump’s criminal cases, it is the first set to go to trial on April 15. As that date approaches, Trump has become increasingly aggressive on social media against Judge Merchan, accusing him of being impartial and biased against him, and calling for his recusal.
Merchan has expanded a gag order against Trump amid these attacks, some of which have also targeted the judge’s daughter, but the former president has continued to make them.
According to individuals close to the matter who spoke with the Times, Trump will be looking to use the action to get an appeals court to delay the start of the trial and to get the gag order lifted. It is not, the outlet noted, terribly likely to work out for the former president, and might see the appeals court act quickly to deny it.
In the wake of the report’s release, numerous reactions cropped up on X, formerly Twitter, accusing Trump and his team of desperation.
Brendan McDermid-Pool/Getty Images
“Trump’s latest desperate move of personally suing Merchan in the appellate division is reminiscent of his initial gambit in Palm Beach, where judge Cannon permitted him to take the whole action off track,” legal analyst Harry Litman posted. “But won’t happen here. Imagine if a criminal defendant could do this…”
“Trump will attempt to SUE judge Merchan to delay the election interference hush money trial,” Allison Gill, host of the Mueller, She Wrote podcast, wrote. “It won’t work. But man, that’s desperate.”
“Trump’s legal stunt — suing the Manhattan judge in his criminal trial there — won’t work,” writer Jon Hutson said in another post. “Just another delaying tactic and a pathetic attempt to look like a victim.”
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.