Former President Donald Trump on Tuesday said a federal judge's gag order is an example of the Biden administration "railroading" him.
U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan, who's overseeing a 2020 election case, on Monday imposed a narrow gag order, barring Trump from making statements targeting prosecutors, possible witnesses, and the judge's staff.
Trump, the clear front-runner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, said Chutkan had taken away his "right to speak."
"My speech has been taken away from me," Trump said. "I'm a candidate that's running for office and I'm not allowed to speak.
"This is a railroading that's all coming out of the Department of Justice. It's all set up by Biden and his thugs that he's surrounded with to try and sneak out an election victory that he's not entitled to win."
Chutkan on Tuesday released her written order placing a limited gag order barring statements that "target…any reasonably foreseeable witness or the substance of their testimony," NBC News reported.
"The defense's position that no limits may be placed on Defendant's speech because he is engaged in a political campaign is untenable, and the cases it cites do not so hold," Chutkan wrote.
"[T]his court has found that even amidst his political campaign, Defendant's statements pose sufficiently grave threats to the integrity of these proceedings that cannot be addressed by alternative means, and it has tailored its order to meet the force of those threats."
The judge's order includes as exception for criticism aimed at "political rivals," such as other people running for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination.
"This Order shall not be construed to prohibit Defendant from making statements criticizing the government generally, including the current administration or the Department of Justice; statements asserting that Defendant is innocent of the charges against him, or that his prosecution is politically motivated; or statements criticizing the campaign platforms or policies of Defendant's current political rivals, such as former Vice President [Mike] Pence."
Chutkan's ruling came after special counsel Jack Smith filed a motion claiming that Trump's comments threatened to undermine his trial for election subversion.
Trump's lawyers fiercely opposed any gag order, saying it unconstitutionally hinder his political speech.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
Charlie McCarthy ✉
Charlie McCarthy, a writer/editor at Newsmax, has nearly 40 years of experience covering news, sports, and politics.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.