# What Good are Gag Orders against Trump? **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Tags:** trump\ **Created:** [October 18, 2023, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-are-gag-orders-against-trump/991753 "2023-10-18T14:21:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2023, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-are-gag-orders-against-trump/991753/21 "2023-10-18T21:40:26Z")
We also need to disarm the MAGA voting block, which will just keep electing nut jobs if we just toss him in jail for hate speech. Lets toss him jail for January 6th and bankrupt him for fraud for all to see. I think we will see him on house arrest and limited social media before this is over. And then see him removed from several state ballots. Locking him up now is too good for him. ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2023, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-are-gag-orders-against-trump/991753/22 "2023-10-18T21:43:49Z")
It will happen. It just takes time. I get the feeling lots of people in this country are only just noticing how long it takes to bring complex cases involving precedent-setting issues to completion within our justice system. None of this is new or novel. ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Knig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/cdc98d/32.png) [@Typo\_Knig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Knig)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2023, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-are-gag-orders-against-trump/991753/23 "2023-10-18T21:50:09Z")
In my non-lawyer opinion, a full gag order is overdue. On the other hand, there’s this from a Washington Post article this week: “But the bombastic diatribes are also giving prosecutors new material that could be used at trial to prove elements of the criminal charges against the former president. If special counsel Jack Smith succeeds in his quest for a gag order on Trump, prosecutors could lose one of their best sources of incriminating information — Trump’s mouth.” Gift link: [https://wapo.st/3MaFafd](https://wapo.st/3MaFafd) ---
**Author:** ![dougrb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/76d3ee/32.png) [@dougrb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dougrb)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2023, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-are-gag-orders-against-trump/991753/24 "2023-10-18T22:09:00Z")
Don’t impede on his right to not have the ability to remain silent. ---
**Author:** ![Icarus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icarus/32/72_2.png) [@Icarus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icarus)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2023, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-are-gag-orders-against-trump/991753/25 "2023-10-18T23:30:12Z")
Yes, maybe true, but we have seen the problem with that. He is a chaos tornado, and in ten minutes he can cause so much damage that the justice system will take decades to sort it out. When an arsonist sets fire to a house, first we put out the fire, then we catch the arsonist AND STOP HIM FROM STARTING MORE FIRES. ---
**Author:** ![snowthx](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowthx/32/10660_2.png) [@snowthx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snowthx)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2023, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-are-gag-orders-against-trump/991753/26 "2023-10-18T23:34:35Z")
He’s like the dinosaur in Jurassic Park - he’s testing the fence, probing to see how far he can go before getting shocked. If he probes a little here and there, to no consequence, then he can nudge a little more the next day, until the Judge swats him on the nose with a newspaper. Evidently, we have not reached that point yet. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2023, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-are-gag-orders-against-trump/991753/27 "2023-10-18T23:47:28Z")
> [@Aspenglow](#): > > …how long it takes to bring complex cases involving precedent-setting issues… What precedent setting issues? If it were you or me doing this the judge would have no patience. This is nothing new. Former president is all they got and I do not see how that applies in this case…it certainly shouldn’t. ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2023, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-are-gag-orders-against-trump/991753/28 "2023-10-18T23:51:42Z")
Did you read the post I cited earlier in the thread? I explained it there. Carving out special speech rights for people who are running for president certainly would be new legal precedent set with respect to our First Amendment rights. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2023, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-are-gag-orders-against-trump/991753/29 "2023-10-19T00:02:34Z")
I did read it. And I agree with you that this is the reality. I disagree, though, that this should be the reality. Trump has no less or more rights than you or I do. If you or I were in this position a judge would not be cautious in dealing with such shenanigans. Running for office confers no special rights. It would be crazy to think that if I were indicted for a crime and in court I could improve my lot by running for political office. This shows there are different rules in the courts. Trump is getting special treatment. I understand why but it still sucks and is wrong IMO. ---
**Author:** ![EddyTeddyFreddy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eddyteddyfreddy/32/18796_2.png) [@EddyTeddyFreddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EddyTeddyFreddy)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2023, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-are-gag-orders-against-trump/991753/30 "2023-10-19T00:08:30Z")
I share @Aspenglow’s concern that we can’t trust this hyperpoliticized Supreme Court if it’s given an opportunity to wade into this morass. ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2023, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-are-gag-orders-against-trump/991753/31 "2023-10-19T00:15:47Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > If you or I were in this position a judge would not be cautious in dealing with such shenanigans. Have you got a lot of experience with gag orders and judges? Because I do. And I can tell you that judges are in fact cautious in handing out sanctions for violating gag orders. A graduated approach is not uncommon. Remember Paul Manafort? He got a graduated approach for violating his conditions of release, too. I will say again, for maybe the 10th time, that as much as you and others want to pretend Trump’s cases are like anyone else’s, they’re not. He’s a former president. He’s a current leading Republican candidate. His rights to run as a candidate cannot be curtailed by carelessly and broadly imposing gag orders that may affect his free speech rights. If you read the actual orders, you’ll see that judges are ruling very narrowly, so Trump’s rights to say whatever dipshit thing he wants won’t be expanded by a Supreme Court that might be willing to consider doing so. If it is clear that the trial court exercised restraint in imposing the gag order, the current standard will be upheld and not overruled. > [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > Running for office confers no special rights. It would be crazy to think that if I were indicted for a crime and in court I could improve my lot by running for political office. I agree with this, and I am reasonably confident that even _this_ SCOTUS will agree with it, too. But if judges try to control Trump’s speech too closely, the rulings I’m afraid of may favor Trump – and they’ll be written in stone for a long, long time. That would not be good for the country. We’ll know soon. Trump has already appealed Judge Chutkan’s gag order. As I knew he would. And that’s another thing you might want to consider: How many people who are subjected to the terms of a gag order have the resources to appeal a judge’s ruling on one? Or have so many people who are willing to believe his rights are being violated merely for being subjected to one? I can only think of one. ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2023, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-are-gag-orders-against-trump/991753/32 "2023-10-19T00:18:25Z")
> [@EddyTeddyFreddy](#): > > we can’t trust this hyperpoliticized Supreme Court if it’s given an opportunity to wade into this morass. Exactly. ---
**Author:** ![PhillyGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ed655f/32.png) [@PhillyGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PhillyGuy)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2023, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-are-gag-orders-against-trump/991753/33 "2023-10-19T02:01:39Z")
withdrawn ---
**Author:** ![PhillyGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ed655f/32.png) [@PhillyGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PhillyGuy)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2023, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-are-gag-orders-against-trump/991753/34 "2023-10-19T02:02:35Z")
Regarding the thread title question, Trump will make gag orders a topic at every rally. I suspect he will keep making the same kind of smears but, because of the gag orders, keep it ambiguous are to which judge or prosecutor or witness he is referring to. Maybe he will ask the crowd to shout out the name of the person he is smearing. If in great fear of jail, he could reply to the shouts something like — not quite, but I hear some good guesses. Does this mean gag orders are good or bad? I suppose – slightly good. With the emphasis on slightly. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2023, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-are-gag-orders-against-trump/991753/35 "2023-10-19T02:09:51Z")
Can we just dispense with the “Enough rope” analogy? He has been collecting “rope” his entire life, and this "rope’ doesn’t seem to be magically making a noose and slipping itself around his neck all by itself. ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2023, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-are-gag-orders-against-trump/991753/36 "2023-10-19T02:51:12Z")
> [@PhillyGuy](#): > > Trump will make gag orders a topic at every rally. And, he’ll continue to lie about the gag orders at every Rally, telling the faithful that they are not letting him campaign (while he is in front of them campaigning) and they are letting him fight the corrupt, socialist (insert names not in the gag order here), because he’s not allowed to mention (insert names not in the gag order here). While he actually insults them in the rally. The crowd loves this kind of shit. ---
**Author:** ![snowthx](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowthx/32/10660_2.png) [@snowthx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snowthx)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2023, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-are-gag-orders-against-trump/991753/37 "2023-10-19T03:15:46Z")
Don’t forget he’s the victim here, so please make a donation to his legal fund. ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2023, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-are-gag-orders-against-trump/991753/38 "2023-10-19T06:15:50Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Trump has been given so much rope he could run a chain of rope stores. Wouldn’t that be a _line_ of rope stores? ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2023, 6:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-are-gag-orders-against-trump/991753/39 "2023-10-19T06:30:33Z")
> [@DesertDog](#): > > > [@Czarcasm](#): > > > > Trump has been given so much rope he could run a chain of rope stores. > > Wouldn’t that be a _line_ of rope stores? - Whatever it’s called, it’s all about stringing along the rubes. ---
**Author:** ![BeepKillBeep](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/9e8a1a/32.png) [@BeepKillBeep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BeepKillBeep)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2023, 10:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-are-gag-orders-against-trump/991753/40 "2023-10-19T10:22:03Z")
Which would promptly go bankrupt, no doubt. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-are-gag-orders-against-trump/991753.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-good-are-gag-orders-against-trump/991753.md?page=3)