Order in the Court

​One of the great imponderables during the whole indictment process of Trump is when he breaks a court order, what restriction can a judge impose on Trump that would actually make a difference to him?

For starters, of course Trump will continue to break court orders.  It's not just that he's flaunted the law most of his life, but it's also pretty much who he is.  He basically can't help himself.  When a judge says, "You may not…", it has no meaning to Trump.  Only last week, a day after being given court orders not to threaten jurors or witnesses, that's exactly what Trump did.  And has kept doing.  This is a man who was found liable of sexual assault, which the judge wrote in a court order was the equivalence of rape.  And almost immediately, Trump continued defaming E. Jean Carroll, and continued insisting he didn't know her despite a jury unanimously finding him liable of sexual assault.  He's now back in court to answer for that.  It's just who he is, and he's open about it -- as he's said in the past, repeatedly, "If you hit me, I'll hit you back 10 times harder."  Indeed, as he said just the other day, "If you go after me, I'm coming after you," which brought the DOJ back into court.  So, yes, of course he'll keep breaking court orders.

So, what to do?

He can be fined, but that's meaningless to Trump. He was fined $5 million over E. Jean Carroll, and that didn't stop him.  What would a $5,000 fine now mean to him - or a $50,000 fine?  It's not just being able to afford it -- it's that he'll just put out a whining fund-raising appeal, and get others to pay for him.

He can be put in prison for a few days, but I suspect that the very last thing the court wants to do is put Trump in prison for violating a court order.  I'm not even sure they will want to him in prison if he's found guilty of interfering with an election or for espionage.  So, jail time for "merely" violating a court order, while possible, seems deeply unlikely.

He can be ordered to have home confinement, but that seems no punishment at all.  We've all seen Mar-a-Lago.  For most people, being ordered to stay there for a few days would get them clamoring to ask the judge, "Can you please make it longer??!"  Indeed, unless he was planning to go to a rally, Trump probably spends most of his time happily at Mar-a-Lago, gladly avoiding having to deal with the lowly ragamuffins who adore him.

So, what court order would have the slightest impact on Trump to get him to stop threatening people against a judge's order and against human decency?

I have a theory.  It's facetious and improbable.  Though it's not something that hasn't been done in the legal system for others.

The basis for coming up with the theory is the question -- what order from the court could possibly concern Trump so much that he would make sure to follow it?

I picture this scenario -

JUGGE CHUTKAN:  Mr. Trump, this is the fifth…

TRUMP:  That's "President Trump."

JUGGE CHUTKAN:  Mr. Trump.  This is the fifth…  No, wait, I want to address that so you understand the seriousness of what's going on in this courtroom because I don't get the sense that you do.  The title "President" is an honorary one now that you are out of office.  This here is a legal proceeding.  Therefore you are "Mr. Trump."  Do you understand?

Trump nods.

JUDGE CHUTKAN:  Mr. Lauro, please direct your client to answer the court.

TRUMP:  Yes.

JUDGE CHUTKAN:  Good.  Now, the reason we are here, Mr. Trump, is because you have ignored my orders on your conduct five times now.  And it's…

TRUMP:  Free speech, Your Honor.  The First Amendment.  I have a political right because I'm…

JUDGE CHUTKAN:  This is not a First Amendment issue, Mr. Trump.  This is a court order.  If you don't understand, please discuss it later with your attorney.  And do not interrupt me again.  Do you understand?

Trump nods.

JUDGE CHUTKAN:  Mr. Lauro, please direct your client to answer the court.

TRUMP:  Yes.

JUDGE CHUTKAN:  Good.  Mr. Trump, this is the fifth time you've ignored my court order.  And it's not just that it's five times.  And it's not that you've been threatening potential jurors, witnesses, the prosecution and the bench.  It's that what you are saying comes across like you have no control of what comes out of your mouth or what you type.  Mad rants.  All capital letters.  Crying out with a level of what seems like insecurity I've rarely seen in defendants before my court.  Almost like they're stream-of-conscious cries for help.  Your rant against the U.S. Women's National Soccer Team and Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient Megan Rapinoe read like someone in a fevered delusion who was unable to stop himself from his worst instincts.  It's at the point where I seriously question if you are unstable and can manage yourself without a legal guardian.  That's why… 

TRUMP:  I am a very stable genius.

JUDGE CHUTKAN:  Do not interrupt me again, Mr. Trump, or I will impose what I am only now just about to suggest I may do.  Do you understand?

Trump nods.

JUDGE CHUTKAN:  Mr. Lauro, please direct your client to answer the court.

TRUMP:  Yes.

JUDGE CHUTKAN:  I have reached the point, Mr. Trump, where I truly have begun to question your sanity. And so I say to  you that if it turns out you are, in fact, unable to follow my new court order to say nothing about witnesses, the prosecution, jurors and myself - nothing, as in "nothing" - I will consider ordering that you have a full mental health and psychiatric evaluation.  Do you understand?

TRUMP:  Yes, Your Honor.

As I said, I'm being facetious.  This is improbable.  But the thing is, I don't think a fine would stop Trump from breaking a court order.  Nor home confinement.  Nor do I think the court wants to jail him over such a thing.  And Trump likely knows that.  But I do believe that getting a psychiatric evaluation would terrify him.

No, I don't see it happening.  But - I think that even just the mere suggestion that maybe the judge might order a psychiatric evaluation might be the biggest deterrent that would scare him out of his shoes.  After all, he might think "Oh, she'll never jail me."  But when the very next thought is - "But…b-b-but…but this..." -

What follows after that for Trump would likely be the pure, white hot, fear of God.  A greater fear for him than even realizing he really does have small hands.