Former President Donald Trump was fined $9,000 for violating a gag order for his criminal trial in New York on Tuesday.
Not one to miss an opportunity, Trump is using the fines as a rallying cry to ask for more donations from supporters.
What Happened: After being fined $9,000 and threatened with jail time for future gag order violations in his hush money criminal trial, Trump sent out an email to supporters asking for financial help.
"A Democrat judge JUST HELD ME IN CONTEMPT OF COURT!" an email asking for donations for Trump National Committee read, as shared by Politico.
The Trump National Committee is a joint fundraising effort by Trump's campaign and the Republican National Committee.
"I was fined $9,000 for 9 gag order violations. THEY WANT TO SILENCE ME! They think they can BLEED ME DRY and SHUT ME UP, but I'll NEVER stop fighting for YOU."
The email came with a link to donate and was sent hours after Judge Juan Merchan issued the gag order violation ruling.
Trump's team also placed ads on X, formerly known as Twitter, according to the report with a message of "This has never happened before in HISTORY!" for Trump's contempt of court violation.
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Why It's Important: The messaging from Trump to his supporters that he's being fined and silenced could resonate and lead to donations and increased support ahead of the 2024 election.
Trump has previously used key legal moments as important timing in donation requests. The former president saw a spike in donations after it was ruled that his assets could be seized related to the civil case in New York against Trump, his two eldest sons and the Trump Organization.
Trump also used his mug shot from an arrest in Georgia that went viral as a fundraising opportunity. Trump even returned to social media platform X, for the first time in years to make a post with his mug shot asking for donations.
While others might've been embarrassed by a mug shot going viral, Trump saw an opportunity to turn the tables and rally his supporters for donations raising millions of dollars.
Trump's current criminal trial sees him needing to be present in New York on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. While this limits his campaign opportunities during the week, Trump is using the trial, which is full of media members, as an opportunity to publicly speak to supporters and raise money for his campaign.
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