The trial began its 12th day on Monday, with Judge Juan Merchan warning Trump yet again that he cannot intimidate witnesses or attack the jury — and making it clear that jail time was a real possibility for the next offense.
But it was the cautious way in which he said it that frustrated observers.
"The last thing I want to do is to put you in jail," Merchan told Trump. "You are the former president of the United States, and possibly the next president as well. There are many reasons why incarceration is truly a last resort for you."
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American Independent writer Oliver Willis was incredulous.
"This is some bulls--t," he posted on Threads.
Author Joanne Bamberger was similarly annoyed, posting just the "mind-blown" emoji.
Trump's niece, Dr. Mary Trump, Ph.D., asked, "How often do criminal defendants get held in contempt ten times without being sent to jail?"
"Look, Trump isn't going to stop violating the gag order," wrote Threads user Jim Wright. "He. Won't. Stop. No one has ever told him he can't do something before and he literally has no frame of reference. He really honestly believes he doesn't have to comply. SO, PUT HIS A-- IN JAIL. Stop f---ing around. Stop giving him yet another chance. And put him in jail for contempt NOW. The only way Trump will learn is to suffer — and I mean SUFFER — the consequences of his actions. Put. Trump. In. Jail."
As it stands, Trump owes just $10,000 for contempt charges. The most he can be charged for violating the gag order in New York is $1,000 per incident — or up to 30 days in jail.
The fact that he's now been hit by 10 fines is why Merchan says he's ready to consider jail time.
Still, it's the apparent reluctance that's frustrating others.
"If you don’t stop, I’m seriously going to have to consider the possibility of potentially having to think about the option of jail time," imitated Riff Ranger, who co-hosts a Power Ranger podcast, wrote on Threads.
"Doug J." runs the "New York Times pitch bot," which satirizes the newspaper's coverage.
"To avoid the perception of partisanship, if Judge Merchan sends Trump to jail for violating his gag order, he must also send Biden to jail," the pitch bot joked.
Retired Harvard Law School Professor Laurence Tribe said that the threats weren't working.
"Judge Merchan's repeated warnings of a possible jail sentence won't suffice unless he finally bites the bullet. Otherwise he'll be just like the boy who cried 'wolf' once too often," he said.
A.J Bruner agreed: "At what point are we actually going to stop threatening the criminal and follow through? Don't ALL these people golf? They should know full well how to follow through."
However, some explained that Judge Merchan is cautious in protecting the case.
A retired public affairs officer and legal officer, Jim Leach, said that he believes Merchan is "being very careful knowing that this case will be appealed."
