During his closing argument, Todd Blanche, defense attorney for former President Donald Trump at his criminal trial in Manhattan where he faces 34 felony counts for allegedly falsifying business documents, asked that the jurors not send his client to prison.
According to The New York Times, prosecutor Joshua Steinglass objected and said: “That was a blatant and wholly inappropriate effort to call sympathy for their client.”
Times reporter Maggie Haberman — Trump’s longtime bete noire at the so-called “paper of record” — reported: “Justice Merchan is now excoriating Todd Blanche for making an ‘outrageous’ statement. Merchan is clearly furious, and reminds Blanche, and not for the first time, that he was a prosecutor for long enough to know that it was out of bounds.”
And in front of Trump after the summation — completely takes his pants down and spanks him in front of everyone. Terrible final moment for Blanche
— Harry Litman (@harrylitman) May 28, 2024
Former and Deputy Assistant Attorney General Harry Litman, who is also reporting live from the courtroom, wrote: “And in front of Trump after the summation — completely takes his pants down and spanks him in front of everyone. Terrible final moment for Blanche.”
Anti-Trump Lincoln Project executive director Michelle Kenney replied to Litman: “LOL what a visual.”
Piling on Blanche’s legal transgression, Norm Eisen, who was special counsel to the House Judiciary Committee from 2019 to 2020 for the impeachment and trial of then-President Trump, also conveyed that the “Judge is BLASTING Blanche for making that comment about sending Trump to prison. It’s highly prejudicial and contrary to the rules.”
Judge is BLASTING Blanche for making that comment about sending Trump to prison
Its highly prejudicial and contrary to the rules
Merchan will give a curative instruction
— Norm Eisen (#TryingTrump out now!) (@NormEisen) May 28, 2024