Judge Juan Merchan rejected Trump’s request to subpoena materials related to NBC’s Stormy Daniels documentary, which the ex-president claimed was a conspiracy against him.
Donald Trump’s subpoena to NBCUniversal for material related to a recent documentary about porn star Stormy Daniels was blocked on Friday by the judge overseeing the former U.S. president’s April 15 criminal trial.
Justice Juan Merchan said Trump’s claim that Daniels and NBC conspired to release the film close to the trial to damage him was unsupported.
To get more stories like this, subscribe to our newsletter The Daily.
“His subpoena and the demands therein are the very definition of a fishing expedition,” the judge wrote in a court order.
Why would a documentary airing on streaming site Peacock be a conspiracy against Donald Trump? It is not like NBC put the program in broadcast primetime.
Calling the subpoena request a fishing expedition was generous.
The request appears to have been a political stunt. Everything that Trump directs his lawyers to do is a political move to help his presidential campaign. The ex-president is laying the foundation for claiming that if he is convicted, it is because NBC, the same network that tried to hire his devoted propagandist Ronna McDaniel, is engaged in a conspiracy with Stormy Daniels to get Trump.
It all sounds pretty crazy, but this is likely the tip of the iceberg compared to the level of conspiracy BS storm that Trump and his lawyers are going to try to throw at the jury to create as much chaos and confusion as possible in an attempt to avoid a felony conviction.
A felony conviction in any of the trials would leave Trump virtually unelectable according to recent polling. Donald Trump has either avoid trial until Election Day or do everything that he can to avoid conviction, because a conviction likely means game over for him in 2024.
A Special Message From PoliticusUSA
If you are in a position to donate purely to help us keep the doors open on PoliticusUSA during what is a critical election year, please do so here.Â
We have been honored to be able to put your interests first for 14 years as we only answer to our readers and we will not compromise on that fundamental, core PoliticusUSA value.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelorâs Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
