Democrat Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg backed down from asking New York Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan on Tuesday to jail former President Donald Trump for allegedly violating a gag order, according to court reporters.
Trump appeared to call Bragg’s bluff, saying in April that it would be a “GREAT HONOR” to become a “modern-day Nelson Mandela” in the “clink” for speaking the truth about Merchan.
Bragg called for the Tuesday hearing to ask Merchan to punish Trump for allegedly violating his gag order. Merchan has the authority to fine and send the former president to jail for up to 30 days for allegedly violating the order.
Bragg appeared to get cold feet in the hearing. He backed down and did not request the judge to punish Trump with jail time.
Reuters reported on the request from Bragg’s prosecutor:
Prosecutor Conroy said Trump’s April 17 post on Truth Social stating that liberal activists were being caught trying to sneak onto the Trump jury was “very troubling.”
Trump’s post attributed the quote to Jesse Watters, a Fox News host.
Conroy said Watters said in his show, “They are catching undercover liberal activists lying to the judge.” Conroy said that the Truth Social post read, “They are catching undercover liberal activists lying to the judge in order to get on the Trump jury.”
Merchan said he would not immediately rule from the bench on the gag order.
Wendell Husebo is a political reporter with Breitbart News and a former GOP War Room Analyst. He is the author of Politics of Slave Morality. Follow Wendell on “X” @WendellHusebø or on Truth Social @WendellHusebo.