Donald Trump began his day with multiple posts on Truth Social blasting all the various people he accuses of unfairly persecuting him. The former president appeared to be less energetic as a criminal trial began in Manhattan, however, fading in and out of consciousness while inside the courtroom, The New York Times reported.
"Well, Jake, he appeared to be asleep," the Times' Maggie Haberman said in an interview Monday afternoon with CNN's Jake Tapper. "Routinely his head would fall down," Haberman continued. "He didn't pay attention to a note that this lawyer, Todd Blanche, passed him. His jaw kept falling on his chest and his mouth kept going slack."
"Sometimes people fall asleep during court proceedings, but it's notable, given the intensity of this morning," Haberman added.
At other times, Trump was more animated, whispering to his legal team and reacting to the proceedings with scornful expressions. When Judge Juan Merchan, who is presiding over Trump's hush money trial, warned Trump that he could be thrown in jail for disrupting the trial, the Republican candidate signaled that he understood.
This isn't the first time Trump might have dozed off during a trial, Haberman told Tapper. "There were other moments in other trials like in the E. Jean Carroll trial, which was around the corner in January, when he appeared very still and seemed he might be sleeping but then he would move," she said.
New York District Attorney Alvin Bragg has charged Trump with 34 felony counts in connection to the falsification of business records to conceal $130,000 in hush money paid to adult film actress Stormy Daniels, a payment made to buy her silence ahead of the 2016 election. Several issues are being dealt with as the trial begins, including routine procedures like jury selection, as well as whether or not Trump should be punished for violating a gag order with his angry Truth Social posts.
