Former acting solicitor general Neal Katyal believes that former President Donald Trump is likely to be imprisoned for violating a gag order.
U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan had granted a gag order on Trump in relation to the January 6 case, prohibiting him from criticizing certain officials or discussing elements of the case.
The order is currently on hold pending an appeal.
“A judge is going to have to confront the ultimate question — are we going to put the former president in jail? And I think there’s only one answer to that… which is you have to, if he continues this behavior.”@neal_katyal on Trump continuing to violate gag order pic.twitter.com/EbBiRypL6l
— Inside with Jen Psaki (@InsideWithPsaki) October 29, 2023
When asked about the possibility of Trump being jailed for violating the order, Katyal expressed confidence that it would happen if the order is reinstated.
“There’s two different gag orders. One Trump has already violated, the one in New York state in which he’s been fined now twice,” he said.
“And then there’s this one you’re talking about at the federal level with Jack Smith. And I you know that one has been put on pause,” Katyal said.
“And I think Donald Trump has made the best case of anyone. He’s witness a for why you need the gag order in effect because the moment that gag order was put on pause, he started going and attacking people left and right.”
“And so I think that there’s no doubt in my mind that there will be a gag order imposed on Donald Trump. And there’s also no doubt in my mind that he’s going to violate it repeatedly, repeatedly to the point where a judge is going to have to confront the ultimate question, are we going to put the former president in jail? And I think there’s only one answer to that,” he continued.
MSNBC host Jen Psaki asked if Katyal predicted that Trump will be imprisoned.
“You have to,” Katyal answered.
“I mean, if he continues this behavior, no other litigant in this country would ever be able to do what he’s doing,” Katyal said.
“And judges, I don’t care what your politics are the one thing you understand is you put on that robe is it’s about the legitimacy of the court understand is you put on that robe is it’s about the legitimacy of the court and about the judicial process.”
