Trump faces potential punishment for violating gag order as hush money trial resumes

“I said what I would do is I would run or publish positive stories about Mr. Trump and I would publish negative stories about his opponents,” ... I said I would be your eyes and ears ... ”

“If I hear anything negative about yourself or if I hear anything about women selling stories, I would notify Michael as I did over the last several years, I would notify Michael Cohen and then he would be able to have them killed ...” or someone would purchase them, Pecker said.

At one point Tuesday, Trump’s lead attorney got a dressing down from Merchan in a humiliating back-and-forth attempting to defend his client’s online behavior.

“You’re losing all credibility with this court,” Merchan said of Todd Blanche, drawing gasps in the courtroom.

The attorney claimed Trump’s posts sharing what others had said about the trial’s anticipated main witnesses were not willful violations of the gag order. But Merchan said Trump sharing Watters’ words that disparaged jurors was “not a repost at all.” He noted that Trump had to write out what the Fox host had said, including quotation marks.

Blanche said it wasn’t meant to threaten or intimidate jurors.The judge reserved issuing a decision.

After Blanche drew the judge’s ire, the former president got his lawyer’s attention with a slap on the arm and said something in his ear. Blanche leaned away, prompting Trump to lean in again and say something else. Blanche then put his head in his hands and rubbed his eyes, looking anguished.

Before the trial started, Merchan had barred Trump from commenting on witnesses, potential witnesses, jurors and all involved in the trial — and their family members.

Trump has pleaded not guilty to 34 felonies alleging he repeatedly and fraudulently falsified New York business records in 2017 in paying back Cohen for a hush money payoff to porn star Stormy Daniels.