Trump loses it over hush money trial witness in quickly-deleted post that risks violating gag order

New York, New York - Donald Trump shared, then quickly deleted, a social media post ranting about a witness in his hush money trial, a day after the judge threatened to jail him for the same behavior.

On Tuesday, Donald Trump may have violated a gag order in his hush money trial by publicly commenting about a witness in a now-deleted social media post.
On Tuesday, Donald Trump may have violated a gag order in his hush money trial by publicly commenting about a witness in a now-deleted social media post.  © Julia Nikhinson / POOL / AFP

Early Tuesday, around 7:30 AM, Trump shared a rant to his Truth Social platform, where he wrote, "I have recently been told who the witness is," and lambasted Judge Juan Merchan, who is overseeing the trial, for being "crooked and highly conflicted."

By 8 AM, the post had been deleted from the platform. A link to the post brings up an error message that reads, "Not found."

Trump's remarks came only a few hours before he is expected in court again for another day of the trial, where he is facing 34 felony charges in the case for allegedly falsifying business records in an effort to hide payments made to porn star Stormy Daniels to cover up an affair.

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During Monday's hearing, Judge Merchan had fined Trump $1,000 for violating a gag order placed on the case, which seeks to prevent Trump from publicly attacking and possibly intimidating witnesses in the case.

He also threatened jail time for Trump if his behavior persists, as it was the second time having to hold him in contempt.

Cover photo: POOL / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP

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