Amidst this ongoing legal battles, Donald Trump stated the Colombia-born judge “hates” him. He went on to say “take a look at where he comes from.”
Former US President Donald Trump has a history of raging about the judges, witnesses and prosecutors over his ongoing legal battles, accusing them of corruption and being part of incumbent President Joe Biden's political agenda. His latest target was Juan Merchan, the acting New York State Supreme Court judge supervising the former president's hush-money trial, in which he is accused of concealing business documents to pay an enormous amount to former film star Donald Trump.
Since the trial began in Manhattan court, Trump has attempted to characterise the experienced judge as biased and the entire issue as a political “witch hunt” designed to hurt his presidential campaign. The GOP leader has already been fined on various occasions for violating the gag order issued against him. However, Trump on Tuesday went a step ahead, using a familiar racist slur against Merchan.
“The judge hates Donald Trump. Take a look. Take a look at him. Take a look at where he comes from,” he said, seemingly referring to Colombia-born judge Merchan.“He can't stand Donald Trump. He's doing everything in his power.”
However, some of the X users pointed out that Merchan and Judge Aileen Cannon, who is overseeing his classified documents case, were born in Colombia and moved to the US.
“Judge Aileen Cannon is also Colombian-born,” X user Mueller wrote.
Congressional lawyer Eric Columbus blasted Trump's remarks while mentioning that both Merchan and Cannon were born in Colombia.
“This is ugly stuff. Judge Juan Merchan comes from Colombia. He moved to the U.S. as a kid. Remarkably, Judge Aileen Cannon was also born in Colombia — but I doubt Trump knows that,” he wrote.
“He's an American. And a patriot. Unlike Trump,” one X user wrote, while another quipped, “Trump's family comes from Germany.”
All you need to know about Trump's cases and judges presiding over them
In March, Judge Merchan issued a gag order against Trump, prohibiting him from making any publiccomments regarding witnesses,attorneys and staff in the case. The ruling omitted Merchan and Alvin Bragg, but it was later amended to include both of their families after Trump launched a scathing attack on the judge's daughter, Loren Merchan.
Earlier this month, Trump was fined $9,000 for breaching the gag order nine times. He was again fined another $1,000 on May 6 after the judge warned him that further infractions may land him in jail.
Merchan moved to the US from Colombia with his family at the age of six. After being raised in Queens, New York, he started his legal career in 1994 as a prosecutor in the New York County District Attorney's Office. In 2009, he was appointed as an acting state Supreme Court justice, with responsibility for felony criminal matters.
Cannon grew up in Miami, Florida after being born in Colombia, She served as an assistant US attorney in the Southern District of Florida's serious crimes and appellate divisions. Cannon was later appointed to the US District Court for the Southern District of Florida in November 2020.
Cannon is presently handling the classified materials case, in which the former US president is accused of illegally keeping sensitive information at his Mar-a-Lago property in Florida and impeding federal officials' attempts to obtain them. Trump has rejected all the allegations and pleaded not guilty in the case.
