Alexis. Congratulations on your graduation. And on that note, i wish you a very good night. From all of our colleagues across the networks of nbc news, thanks for staying up late. Ill see you at the end of tomorrow. Really happy to have you here. Here we go, ready . The clerk, this is the people of the state of new york against donald j. Trump smz 71911 24. Appearances, starting with the people, prosecutor joshua steinglass, for the people, susan, becky mangold, christopher conroy, and katherine ellis. Good morning. Defense council bove, joined by President Trump seated to my left and joined by todd blanche, susan and kendra wharton. The judge, good morning. Good morning, mr. Trump. So the matter called into the record is the peoples motion for contempt, meaning the prosecutions motion for contempt. The judge say, quote, before i hand down my decision, i did want to address the defense and mr. Trump. Mr. Trump, as you know, the prosecution has filed three separate motions asking this court to find you in contempt. In a moment, im going to hand down my decision on the third motion, in which i find you in Criminal Contempt for the tenth time. Quote, it appears that the 1,000 fines are not serving as a deterrent. Therefore, going forward, this court will have to consider a Jail Sanction if recommended. Mr. Trump, it is important to understand that the last thing i want to do is put you in jail. You are the former president of the United States and possibly the next president as well. There are many reasons why incarceration is truly a last resort for me. To take that step would be disruptive to these proceedings which i imagine you want to end as quickly as possible. I also worry about the people who would have to execute that sanction. The court officer, the correction officers, the secret Service Detail among others. I worry about them and about what would go into executing such a sanction. Of course, im also aware of the broader implications of such a sanction. The magnitude of such a decision is not onesided, but at the end of the day, i have a job to do, and part of that job is to protect the dignity of the judicial system and compel respect. Your continued violations of this courts lawful order threaten to interfere with the administration of justice in constant attacks which constitute a direct attack on the rule of law. I cannot allow that to continue. So as much as i do not want to impose a Jail Sanction, and i have done everything i can to avoid doing so, i want you to understand that i will if necessary and appropriate. Do the attorneys have any other questions about that . I will now hand down the decision from the court. This is for the defense, this is for the people. Transcript then notes, Wrp The Sergeant gives copies of the courts decision to the parties and the judge say, quote, you can call the trial. The clerk, this is people of the state of new york against donald j. Trump, indictment 71543 23, case on trial continued. This is the third week of the trial. This was a momentous thing that happened today, right . This is i mean, we knew it was coming, but now that its happened, this is a momentous thing. This is a lawful order of a lawfully constituted american Criminal Court. The judge saying, you are repeatedly disobeying this lawful order. If lesser sanctions cannot persuade you to stop violating this courts order and apparently they cannot, then you will be jailed. Even, yes, as a former president of the United States, you too are a citizen and will subject to the law like every citizen is. Were there. We have never been in a place like this before. And thats because of really, you know, specific historical circumstances. When Richard Nixon resigned in disgrace and his Vice President who then ascended to the presidency gave nixon a full pardon. Why did he give him a pardon . It says explicitly in the language of the pardon that that happened so nixon would not face arrest and indictment and trial. He had resigned the presidency at least, right . So the threat he posed to the country was over. And so he was allowed to evade personal punishment. Remember, though, that was less than a year after nixons Vice President also resigned, also as part of, effectively, a plea deal with the Justice Department to avoid, in his case, what would have been his prosecution on 40 felony corruption charges. What happened to spiro agnew was a little bit like what happened to nixon. There was a plea deal to avoid prosecution. So the dynamic was the same, because agnew agreed to leave office, that meant the threat he posed as a deeply corrupt person in High Eelected office, that threat was over. And because he left office, he was allowed to evade significant personal punishment. And so neither nixon nor agnew went to jail for even a day. Now, though, we are learning the consequences of, you know, in our history letting president s evade personal punishment when they have committed crime, because now weve got a former president who isnt leaving office like nixon did, like agnew did. Now weve got one who isnt eliminating the ongoing danger to the public by getting out of public life, right, so maybe that could have been what he traded his freedom for. No, for our sins, what weve got now is one of these guys whos staying in public life. And therefore the threat is alive, right . Hes running to get back into the presidency with four different criminal trials stacked up like taxiing planes on a runway. And so no, none of us having any idea what it will mean for us as a country for him to be sent to jail as part of these criminal proceedings is part of what is new for us in this moment. Today justice juan merchan in new york said jail is what is coming next if trump continues to disobey court orders. And do you think hes going to continue to disobey these court orders . Justice merchan said, quote, i worry about the people who would have to execute that sanction. The court officer, the correction officer, the secret Service Detail, among others. I worry about them and about what would go into executing such a sanction. Of course, im also aware of the broader implications of such a sanction, but at the end of the day, i have a job to do. Your continued violations of this courts lawful order threaten to interfere with the administration of justice, constant attacks which constitute a direct attack on the rule of law. I cannot allow that to continue. As much as i do not want to impose a Jail Sanction and ive done everything can to avoid doing so i want you to understand that i will. I will do it if i have to. Your direct attack on the rule of law cannot be allowed to continue. Just a signal moment in American History today. And its sort of clearer to me on this day at this moment than its ever been in my lifetime that the rule of law isnt just a bumper sticker, right, it isnt an abstract thing. I doesnt float in and infuse the atmosphere. Its specific stuff. In a daytoday way it means court orders must be obeyed. If you dont obey them, the court will punish you for that. It mean, for another example, that people who are part of the judicial system, judge, court personnel, juries, witnesses, defense lawyers, prosecutor, it means theyre also able to do their work without being threatened or intimidated or being harassed or fired by people who are associated with the accused. Thats law and order, right . Thats the rule of law. Thats a nuts and bolts concrete thing. And it is under intense, incredible pressure. It is having trouble right now in our country because as the judge in trumps first criminal trial is trying to stand up for the rule of law today, as he said in this warning to trump, right, this Cross The Rubicon Moment in court today where he warned trump he is making plans to jail him if he keeps violating the courts order, while that is happening, simultaneously, the rpzcontrolled senate in the State Of Georgia is moving forward on what appears to be their plans to subpoena the prosecutor leading the criminal case against trump in the State Of Georgia. Fani willis is leading that prosecution. As soon as she opened that investigation, the Republicanled Legislature in georgia started moving to try to curtail her authority, to give themselves the ability to fire her as a prosecutor. That process has been weaving and winding through legal obstacles for months now, but now they are planning to haul the prosecutor, to haul fani willis into the state senate and force her to turn over evidence and testify herself under oath while she continues to try to lead that prosecution. Meanwhile, simultaneously on capitol hill weve now got the republican chair of the house judiciary committee, jim jordan, launching apparently some kind of new investigation into one of the assistant District Attorneys who was in court today leading the prosecution of trump and his new york case. Meanwhile, simultaneously, this weekend the former president hosted a high dollar fundraiser at his home in florida in which he, uned bien, brought up the prosecutor in florida and his overthrow the government case in washington, d. C. According to a recording of those recordings reviewed by nbc news, trump said at this fundraiser, quote, deranged jack smith, one of the sickest prosecutors in the world the sick, evil thug, take a look at the deranged. And hes perfect, because you look at him. Hes not attractive both inside and out. I mean, you couldnt get a better guy if youre trying to make the devil that deranged. Yes, this is one unattractive dude. Thats why and then the former president reportedly said fricking expletive. That was saturday afternoon. That was not long after he had posted this in all caps online on his social media company, quote, Arrest Deranged jack smith. He is a criminal. Again, the rule of law is not an abstract feeling or sense of being. Its not something you just proclaim to be true and then set it and forget it. Right . Terrorizing judges and juries and witnesses and prosecutors is something that breaks the rule of law. If those people are intimidated and harassed and threatened, the rule of law has been broken. This past friday California Man was criminally charged with making Death Threats against Fulton CountyDistrict Attorney fani willis. Few weeks ago a man in new york was charged with threatening new yorks Attorney General general, tish james, and judge arthur overseeing the civil case brought against trumps business by new York Attorney general tish james. A woman from texas was sentenced to three years in prison for threatening the judge overseeing trumps classified documents case in florida. Not long before that, a different texas woman was charged with threatening the judge whos overseeing trumps other federal criminal case, the overthrow the government case, in Federal Court in washington. Not long before that, the fbi fatally shot a man who had threatened to kill the new york District Attorney alvin bragg who has brought the case thats currently being argued in Criminal Court in new york. This stuff has consequences and this stuff is consequences. We are not looking at some vague future threat to the rule of law. What youre seeing here is actively and currently damaging the rule of law right now. Because people are intimidated and terrorized. People who work in the legal system as these alleged crimes are adjudicated there are being harassed, threatened with firing, and intimidated and threatened. Excite is happening in all the criminal cases that surround trump. You might remember this lead in a recent Special Report from routers. District judge Royce Lamberth has been threated by criminals, drug cartels, even al qaeda, but nothing prepared him for the wave of Ra Hah Raszment after he began Hearing Cases against supporters of former President Donald Trump who attacked the u. S. Capitol in aed by to overturn the 2020 election. Lamberth, appointed by republican president ronald reagan, was painted as part of a deep state conspiracy to destroy trump and his followers. Calls for his execution cropped up on protrump websites. Quote, traitors get rope, said one. After he issued a Prison Sentence to one idaho woman who pled guilty to joining the january 6th riot, lamberths chambers voicemail filled with Death Threats. One man found lamberths Home Phone Number and called repeatedly with graphic vows to murder him. Lamberth told router, quote, i could not believe how many Death Threats i got. This is, again, not some future potential threat to the rule of law, this is damage to the rule of law. And it is here already. When participating in the adjudication of alleged crimes by a political figure and his followers bring you Death Threats the rule of law has been bent. The rule of law has been broken. Those harms to the rule of law, that damage to the rule of law has been inflicted already. The prospect of jail for the Republican Partys active president ial nominee, that is here already. He got his facetoface warning in court today in new york. One more violation of the courts order banning him from speaking about the jury or witnesses in his case, and he will be put in jail. With secret Service Detail. That time is now here. Which means we are about to find out what its like to be a country that has a president ial candidate and former president in jail because he refuses to follow court orders. Its not a thought speerments anymore, its not the future, it is here, are we ready . And the rule of law and the democratic system go together, right . As the rule of law has bent and been broken by trump and his movement, weve also seen the democratic system bend and get broken by trump and his movement. Obviously, we did not have a peaceful transfer of power the last time he competed in and lost an election. There is no commitment at all, no expectation at all by anyone that he and his followers will allow for a peaceful transfer of power this next time if he loses this next election as well. Hes not even giving lip service to the idea that they will allow for a peaceful transfer of power. He wont even say it and not mean it. And even more importantly than that just coming out of his face in his Republican Party accepting that his followers will not abide the results of the next election and neither will the Republican Party in all of its power and all of its resources. Accepting that is now the price of admission to power in that party. In march of this year, the Republican National committee hired two new lawyers to oversee the partys Election Year legal efforts. Now just two months after, that of those two lawyer, one of thems been indicted for helping in the effort to keep him in power illegally after he lost the last election and the second one of those two lawyers has just been pushed out of his job at the rnc, reportedly because hes not willing to do the same thing. Quote, trump originally approved of the hiring, one source told cnn, but sources said trump was then angered after his allies pointed to slips of the slaughter criticizing the false claims that the 2020 election was stolen. So two lawyers hired by the rnc to oversee legal efforts around the 2024 election, one of them herself now under indictment, the other one reportedly fired for casting doubt that the last election was stolen. For suggesting that the real Election Results were a real thing. Think about that for a second. The chief counsel of the national Republican Party just fired, reportedly, because he was insufficiently enthusiastic about falsifying election result, about working to throw out real Election Results and get trump into power despite them. I know this feels like, you know, like an incremental update on the days news, but just step back from this for a second. If it is now the de facto position of the mainstream Republican Party that we are not going to use the real results of elections to decide who is in power, if in order to be in a position of authority in the Republican Party now you must now pledge to reject Election Results, then tell me how are we going to decide who is in power in this country . Whats the other mechanism going to use if its not real Election Results . The idea that there is an abstract rule of law or an abstract democracy that exists ambiently in the atmosphere and some day, some day distantly in the future we might lose it, its not how this goes. The rule of law is mortal, right . It can be killed. It is wounded when the people involved in the judicial system and the adjudication of alleged crimes are being threatened and harassed and intimidated and pressured out of their jobs for doing that work. Similarly, democracy is morta