Attempts by Donald Trump to derail and create chaos at his Manhattan hush money trial have been promptly shut down by Judge Juan Merchan who is earning praise from legal experts.
With jury selection wrapped up and opening arguments scheduled for Monday, the trial is progressing at a speed that was unexpected and credit is being given to Merchan who has brought the former president to heel by quickly admonishing him as demonstrated when he was warned about addressing prospective jurors.
In a column for MSNBC, legal experts Norm Eisen, Jacob Kovacs-Goodman and Francois Barrilleaux suggested Trump may have finally "met his match" in the no-nonsense jurist based upon the past week's proceedings.
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"In Merchan’s courtroom, our country’s bedrock principle that no one is above the law is flourishing. In this first week of proceedings, the jury selection process proved resilient and, despite challenges, moved much faster than many thought," they wrote.
They went on to add, "It helped that the judge kept the former president on a tight leash when jurors were in the courtroom. While Trump may broadcast his tirades against the legal system and American elections to millions around the world on Truth Social (and faces a contempt hearing for possible gag order violations as a result), inside the courtroom he must follow the same rules as any other criminal defendant."
Judge Merchan was also praised for how quickly he pushed through the sticky issue of selecting jurors while also being cognizant of the defendant's right to a fair trial.
"By commencing this high-pressure proceeding in the usual manner and ensuring jurors are unbiased as well as unintimidated, Merchan is demonstrating that, in America, we aspire to equal justice for all," they wrote before adding, "The more-or-less nuts-and-bolts process we saw unfold this week paves the way for a prompt opening of the case and shows that accountability is coming for Donald Trump at last."
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