Former President Donald Trump has several new allies in his fight against a judge-imposed gag order in the case accusing him of seeking to overthrow the 2020 election.
Led by Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird and West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey, a total of 18 Republican state attorneys general on Tuesday filed a brief opposing the gag order handed down by U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan.
Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody was not among them.
Read: Rep. Matt Gaetz Of Florida Defends Push To Leave Marijuana Laws To The States
The AGs’ move came as Special Prosecutor Jack Smith sought to have the order reimposed on Trump, who was banned from publicly commenting on Smith and his staff, defense counsel, court staff, and witnesses.
Smith asked an appellate court to reverse its ruling gutting Chutkan’s order, which came last week.
The judges accepted Trump’s argument that it violated his First Amendment freedoms and temporarily quashed the order until a new hearing could be held on Nov. 20.
Even the left-wing American Civil Liberties Union backed Trump and called the order unconstitutional.
In their filing, the GOP AGs argued that Chutkan “overstepped” her boundaries by restricting Trump’s speech.
“As administrators of free and fair elections, we have an interest in ensuring no illegal prior restraint is entered against any major political candidate,” the attorneys general wrote.
Read: Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene Files Bill To Block Funding For All CDC Efforts On Vax
“Indeed, our citizens have an interest in hearing from major political candidates in that election. The Order threatens the States’ interests by infringing on President Trump’s free speech rights.”
“The judge’s approach for the gag order ignores the fact that the government’s case is political to the core—it’s obvious the other side is stopping at nothing to silence Biden’s political opponent,” Morrisey said in a statement.
“When political foes join in a common defense, you know there’s something there,” he added.
In response to Trump, Smith’s office claimed that the former president does not possess “an unfettered right to try his case in the media.”
The states that joined Iowa and West Virginia include Alabama, Alaska, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas and Utah.
Android Users, Click To Download The Free Press App And Never Miss A Story. Follow Us On Facebook and Twitter. Signup for our free newsletter.
We can’t do this without your help; visit our GiveSendGo page and donate any dollar amount; every penny helps