Trump is being allowed to ramp up 'crazed' attacks – leaving 'rule of law' in doubt: Author

The media has failed to accurately report Donald Trump's most "crazed" reactions to the criminal cases filed against him, according to a journalist and author.

That has emboldened the former president to step up his attacks on prosecutors using menacing tones, and writer Steven Bechloss joined other experts in examining the threat Trump poses to the justice system and democracy itself in interviews with Salon.

"We have seen over and over the reluctance of the courts to hold Donald Trump accountable for his virulently violent attacks on judges and prosecutors, fueling this dangerous climate of stochastic terrorism and intimidating witnesses and tampering with potential jurors," Bechloss said.

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"Is it any wonder that he is escalating his attacks by promising retribution against Joe Biden if he retakes power and redoubling his hostility toward Special Counsel Jack Smith in recent days (calling him 'deranged' and engaged in 'unchecked and insane aggression')?"

Most of those attacks come in campaign rallies or posts on Truth Social, which the media has largely stopped covering to avoid amplifying his statements, Bechloss said.

But that leaves many Americans ignorant of the threat he poses.

"The media's general reluctance to report on and amplify the crazed posts further empowers him to keep pushing the limits, especially as the legal vise tightens and his fear rises. U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan has made clear that criminal defendant Trump's right to free speech is 'not absolute — and she insisted that she would accelerate the trial date in the election interference case if he continues to obstruct justice with his dangerous comments," Bechloss said.

"But despite her encouraging words, she has yet to take action. Once again, this only intensifies the malignant Trump belief that the law does not apply to him. And more, with the release of his mugshot and his heightened criminal 'status,' he's discovered a new way to convince his cult to give him their money. With anyone else, a gag order or taking him into custody would be the obvious direction this is heading."

But so far no one, including Chutkan, has been willing to reign Trump in.

"That should change, no matter how loud the cries of political persecution from the criminal defendant or his followers (or the worries from Democrats that this will only strengthen him as a presidential candidate)," Bechloss wrote. "Either there is rule of law or there isn't."