The Gutted Gag Order

A D.C. appellate court panel helped Judge Chutkan save face by refusing to reverse her gag order on Donald Trump. But the judges scaled back the scope of the order while offering plenty of criticism.

If one relied only on headlines, one would believe the recent appellate court ruling that kept intact the framework of Judge Tanya S. Chutkan’s unprecedented gag order on the presumptive Republican nominee for president is a big defeat for Team Trump. News outlets reported that the three-judge panel upheld “most” of Chutkan’s order and focused on the decision’s inflammatory language about the former president’s social media habits.