CNN anchor Kaitlan Collins pushed back against former President Trump’s lead attorney Todd Blanche on Thursday when he claimed his client displayed “exemplary” behavior during the hush money trial.
“President Trump, in my view, behaved in a way that I thought was exemplary for a defendant facing what he was facing in that environment, in that courtroom for the past five weeks,” Blanche said in an interview with Collins.
Collins then interjected and told Blanche, “It was inappropriate. When he came out and would rail against Judge [Juan] Merchan and go after his daughter and other witnesses.”
Trump repeatedly made comments about the court staff and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg (D) throughout the trial, arguing to reporters, on social media and in campaign speeches that the charges were politically motivated.
At one point before the trial began, Trump lashed out against Merchan and his daughter, Loren, who was a Democratic consultant for a firm representing several high-profile politicians.
This caused Merchan to impose a gag order that prohibited the former president from publicly commenting on witnesses, prosecutors, court staff or the judge’s family in the case, but did not bar him from directly attacking Merchan or Bragg.
“Trump did not go after the judge’s daughter after he was gagged at all. And by the way … the defense went after the judge’s daughter in public filings,” Blanche said. “So, you want me to say that it was inappropriate for President Trump to do something that I believed under the law requires to be brought to the judge’s attention?”
Collins pointed out Trump has a “massive following” on social media.
“Making a point — a court filing is different than making a point on Truth Social,” she said.
“Why? I guess I question that?” Blanche responded. “So the idea is, as a … attorney, I’m allowed to make motions, put arguments in front of the judge, but if my clients make those same arguments to the people who are going to decide whether he should be president of the United States … somehow, it’s OK for me to do it, but he can’t?”
Collins rebuked there are certain “venues” to make an argument, while Blanche noted the court filings are not always read by the public.
“I mean, you read those filings, we read those filings, obviously we talked about those filings,” Collins said.
In a historic verdict Thursday, Trump was found guilty of all 34 counts of falsifying business records in New York, making him the first former U.S. president to become a convicted felon.
The charges center around reimbursements made to Trump’s onetime fixer and attorney Michael Cohen for a hush money payment made to porn actor Stormy Daniels.
The former president is expected to be sentenced July 11, four days before the 2024 Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. Trump could face jail time, though first-time offenders on charges like Trump’s are rarely incarcerated.