President-elect Donald Trump on Tuesday urged Republican senators to “hold the line” and not confirm anymore judges before he takes office in January. His forceful request came just minutes after Manhattan prosecutors asked a judge to delay criminal sentencing in his hush money case until after he leaves office in 2029.
“The Democrats are trying to stack the Courts with Radical Left Judges on their way out the door,” Trump posted on Truth Social. “Republican Senators need to Show Up and Hold the Line — No more Judges confirmed before Inauguration Day!”
Trump’s post followed Manhattan prosecutors, led by District Attorney Alvin Bragg, requesting to postpone his sentencing on 34 charges of falsifying business records related to payments made to adult film star Stormy Daniels. He was initially set to be sentenced on Nov. 26, but that was put on hold earlier this month after a joint request from prosecutors and Trump’s legal team.
“The people deeply respect the office of the president, are mindful of the demands and obligations of the presidency, and acknowledge that defendant’s inauguration will raise unprecedented legal questions,” prosecutors wrote to Judge Juan M. Merchan on Tuesday. “We also deeply respect the fundamental role of the jury in our constitutional system.”
In a statement shared with The New York Times, Steven Cheung, Trump’s spokesperson who will soon serve as the White House communications director, called the decision a “total and definitive victory for President Trump and the American people.”
Cheung added: “The lawless case is now stayed, and President Trump’s legal team is moving to get it dismissed once and for all.”
For Bragg, who spearheaded the prosecution against Trump earlier this year, his decision to request a postponement was due to “limited and unappealing” options, as the Times put it: “He could have either dropped the case, a move that would have alienated his liberal Manhattan base, or proposed some way to pause it, potentially intensifying Mr. Trump’s ire and drawing a legal challenge.”
