Judge appears skeptical of potential gag order in Trump classified docs case

Florida judge Aileen Cannon appeared hesitant to impose a gag order on former President Donald Trump on Monday, claiming there needed to be a connection between Trump's rhetoric and an actual threat to law enforcement officials.

Special counsel Jack Smith's team requested a gag order on Trump after he allegedly made inflammatory comments about the FBI agents who searched his Mar-a-Lago resort in 2022. Trump claimed last month that the FBI under President Joe Biden had been “locked & loaded and ready to take me out." 

Although Cannon did not issue a definitive ruling on the gag order request, the judge questioned where the former president urged people to be violent against the FBI and other potential targets.

"[The order] still requires a finding," Cannon said, per CNN. “There still needs to be a factual connection between A and B."

Prosecutor David Harbatch responded that Trump's rhetoric “ultimately result[s] in all types of terrible things," and urged Cannon to act immediately instead of waiting "for tragedy to strike," according to NBC News. 

The back-and-forth between Cannon and Harbatch over Trump's comments was not the only time that the two sparred on Monday. Cannon accused Harbatch of being unprofessional, claiming she did not "appreciate" his tone when discussing modifying Trump’s conditions of release.

“I appreciate decorum at all times” Cannon said. “If you aren’t able to do that, I’m sure one of your colleagues can take up arguing this motion.”

Harbatch later apologized for his behavior, stating that he had not intended to be unprofessional. 

Trump's defense attorney Todd Blanche said his client made no threats against FBI agents, and that his comments were only attacks against the president. He also claimed that prosecutors were trying to set a "dangerous precedent" by being vague in what constitutes a threat. 

“Steve Bannon making a comment is potentially the kind of thing that could send President Trump to jail,” Blanche said.

Cannon has given Blanche and Harbatch until Wednesday to provide further evidence in their arguments regarding the gag order. The Florida judge has previously denied other attempts to institute a gag order on the former president.

Misty Severi is an evening news reporter for Just the News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.