Judge Criticizes Trump on CNN Over Remarks About Other Judge's Daughter

A sitting federal judge took to CNN (Lean Left bias) on Thursday to criticize former President Donald Trump’s verbal attacks against the daughter of the judge in his criminal New York hush-money trial. 

For Context: Judge Juan Merchan placed a gag order on Trump on Tuesday, prohibiting him from making public statements about witnesses, prosecutors, court staff, and their family members “if those statements are made with the intent to materially interfere with” the case. 

Trump’s Remarks: The same day, Trump labeled Merchan as “totally compromised” because his “Daughter, Loren, is a Rabid Trump Hater, who has admitted to having conversations with her father about me.” Loren Merchan has worked at a progressive political consulting firm that worked with high-profile Democrats, including President Joe Biden. 

Judge’s CNN Remarks: U.S. District Judge Reggie Walton came to Merchan’s defense on Thursday, telling CNN, “It’s very disconcerting to have someone making comments about a judge, and it’s particularly problematic when those comments are in the form of a threat, especially if they’re directed at one’s family.” 

How the Media Covered It: While coverage from the left often cast Trump as “attacking” and “targeting” Merchan’s daughter, coverage from the center and right was mixed. The Hill (Center bias) directly contrasted Trump’s remarks with his previous request for a judge to “leave my children alone.” While The Epoch Times (Lean Right bias) highlighted criticism of Walton for going on CNN, Newsmax (Right bias) covered a report that the Twitter/X account at the heart of Trump’s criticism had not belonged to the judge’s daughter since “approximately a year ago.”