Silencing foes of the Deep State

Last Friday, Judge Amy Berman Jackson of the Federal District Court of the District of Columbia placed a gag order on Roger Stone and his attorneys. She ordered Stone to "refrain from making statements to the media or in public settings that pose a substantial likelihood of material prejudice to this case." Jackson was concerned that statements could "influence any juror, potential juror, judge, witness or court officer or interfere with the administration of justice." It was also done to "maintain the dignity and seriousness of the courthouse." Judge Jackson is concerned about the "the size and vociferousness of the crowds that have already been attracted to these proceedings, and the risk that public pronouncements by the participants may inflame those gatherings." She did not silence Stone completely, but warned him there would be consequences for his speaking out. She stated, "One factor that will be considered in the evaluation of any future request for relief based on pretrial publicity will be the extent to which the publicity was engendered by the defendant himself." Judge Jackson placed a similar gag order on Paul Manafort. She is also the judge who ordered Manafort to serve time in solitary confinement.

Will the judge issue a similar gag order for the Deep State Media? Does media coverage "pose a substantial likelihood of material prejudice to this case"? MSNBC covered Stone's arrest by having Maya Wiley comment. She is described on the program as a "former civil prosecutor, Southern District of New York." Wikipedia describes her as a "civil rights activist," which is perhaps not quite as impressive a "federal prosecutor." Wiley commented, "This was a textbook noneventful arrest." She did not make it clear if she was referring to a Gestapo or Soviet NKVD textbook. Was it necessary to have 29 government agents armed with handguns and high-powered automatic rifles, two amphibious watercraft, and a helicopter equipped with long-range precision weaponry and high-powered spotlights to arrest a 66-year-old man who had no criminal record? Was it necessary to shackle him hand and foot? Who authorized this expense during a government shutdown? Although the street was blocked off to the public, CNN is still claiming that its coverage of Stone's arrest was the result of exceptionally ingenious journalistic work. Wiley claimed, "We know from one of the journalists from CNN who overheard and witnessed this part of the video that the exchange between the agents and Roger Stone sounded cordial." Not having been gagged by a judge and not being concerned that they may influence a juror, judge, or witness, MSNBC has pointed out that Stone was "kicked off of Twitter for violating their terms." Wiley remarked that Stone said Don Lemon, a CNN news anchor, "should be humiliated, mocked and punished." She continued, "He's saying this about a black man in America, by the way, at a time when hate crimes were also on the rise. So this was not a small thing that he was pulled off Twitter." Apparently, "a black man in America" cannot be criticized no matter how idiotic his is. Fox News legal analyst Gregg Jarrett posted on Twitter that Lemon is "a racist, hypocrite and idiot all rolled up into one" after Lemon claimed, "The biggest terror threat in this country is white men." Can Jarrett, having criticized "a black man in America," expect to be banned from Twitter? Twitter is selective in enforcing its policy on violations of their terms. The FCC chairman asserts that Twitter has a double standard when it comes to banning conservatives. The Roger Stone farce has demonstrated that the Deep State has unlimited power and is capable of the greatest evil. People who believe they are immune should read Harvey A. Silvergate's Three Felonies a Day. Silvergate reveals how federal criminal laws have become disconnected from English common law. He contends that "the morass of the Code of Federal Regulations [is] handing federal prosecutors an additional trove of vague and exceedingly complex and technical prohibitions to stick on their hapless targets." He claims that no social class or profession is immune. If you will not cooperate, the government can bankrupt you with legal fees. It can threaten to arrest your spouse. You can be placed in solitary confinement. You can even be terminated by the authorities placing you in a prison area known to be dangerous. John Dietrich is a freelance writer and the author of The Morgenthau Plan: Soviet Influence on American Postwar Policy (Algora Publishing). He has a Master of Arts degree in international relations from St. Mary's University. He is retired from the Defense Intelligence Agency and the Department of Homeland Security. Photo credit: U.S. Courts.