“Attacking a Campaign Witness: Court Gag Order vs. Trump

President Donald Trump recently faced off with yet another high-profile legal battle when his lawyers attempted to enforce a gag order on a confidential witness who was set to testify against him in court. This comes days after a federal appeals court granted Trump a temporary stay from having to provide an unredacted statement of evidence in the ongoing campaign finance probe. In some ways, this move was almost entirely unexpected, and many were left wondering why Trump would even consider such an aggressive tactic. After all, one of the pillars of democracy is the ability of the people to scrutinize those in positions of power. As such, shutting down public debate and hiding evidence from public scrutiny lauds Trump closer to a dictatorship. That said, the move is not without its opponents. Many viewed Trump’s move as a possible attempt to silence the witnesses who are likely to bring damaging testimony against him. In doing so, Trump could possibly avoid accountability for alleged crimes and misuse of office. The legal implications of the gag order are even more daunting. Under the First Amendment of the United States Constitution, gag orders must be tailored to serve a substantial government purpose and narrowly tailored to serve that cause. In other words, a valid gag order must be the least drastic, most narrowly tailored way to protect a compelling governmental interest. While it remains to be seen whether Trump’s legal team will be able to make their argument successful in a court of law, it is certainly putting the public’s right to know and the people’s right to scrutinize the government on trial. At the end of the day, the issue of a gag order is just the latest example of President Trump’s move to protect himself above all else. While Trump’s legal team may be able to convince a court to allow the gag order, it could easily backfire on the president and provide the public with even more questions and suspicion. Only time will tell if the president’s strategy will prove successful.