With the threat of Rikers Island in the air, Donald Trump decides it's a wise move to go on social media and refer to court-related pesonnel as "sleazeballs" and "grifters", even calling Judge Merchan "corrupt"

Inside Rikers Island (New York Daily News)

Donald Trump might have taken another step yesterday toward residing in a jail cell by referring to certain personnel connected to his New York hush-money trial as "sleazeballs," according to a post at The New Republic (TNR). That comes on the heels of Judge Juan Merchan's warning that more disruptive behavior could put Trump behind bars, and several news outlets have reported that the former president's likely destination would be Rikers Island,  which has a well-earned reputation as an extremely unpleasant place to be. From Wikipedia:

Rikers Island has had a reputation for violence, physical and mental abuse and neglect of its inmates, and has attracted press and judicial scrutiny that has resulted in numerous rulings against the New York City government. There have been numerous assaults by inmates on uniformed officers and other civilian staff, often resulting in serious injuries. In May 2013, Rikers Island ranked as one of the ten worst correctional facilities in the entire United States, based on reporting in Mother Jones magazine. A documented increase in violence on Rikers Island was reported by the 2010s. In 2015, there were 9,424 assaults, the highest number in five years. In October 2019, the New York City Council voted to close down the facility by 2026.

Trump knows the risk he is taking by continuing to spout off about court-related personnel. But TNR's Ellie Quinlan Houghtaling suggests Trump is wired in such in such a way that he can't seem to resist insulting people, even those who have power over him and could make his life extremely unpleasant. Under the headline "Trump Risks New Gag Order Violation With Fresh “Sleazeballs” Tirade; He was just warned about jail time too," Houghtaling writes:

Donald Trump simply can’t help himself from taking a solid jab at the partial gag order he’s under in his New York hush-money trial. The court-imposed gag order prevents him from speaking publicly about courtroom staff, prosecutors, jurors, witnesses, or their family members—but according to Trump, not having the opportunity to openly insult them is thoroughly “unfair.”

“It is a really bad feeling to have your Constitutional Right to Free Speech, such a big part of life in our Country, so unfairly taken from you, especially when all of the sleazebags, lowlifes, and grifters that you oppose are allowed to say absolutely anything that they want,” Trump wrote on Truth Social Wednesday morning, during his only break from the courtroom this week.

“It is hard to sit back and listen to lies and false statements be made against you knowing that if you respond, even in the most modest fashion, you are told by a Corrupt and Highly Conflicted Judge that you will be PUT IN PRISON, maybe for a long period of time,” he continued. “This Fascist mindset is all coming from D.C. It is a sophisticated hit job on Crooked Joe Biden’s Political Opponent, ME!

Is this more mindless whining from Trump, a product of his inability to take responsibility for anything, and his likely desire to build a persecution complex that might prompt his MAGA supporters to act in threatening ways. Trump acts as if he doesn't grasp this, so he spouted off some more -- even naming names. Houghtaling writes:

Trump then went on to attack Judge Arthur Engoron and Judge Lewis Kaplan, who oversaw two of his prior civil trials, including the New York bank-fraud trial in which Trump had to cough up $15,000 for violating a similar gag order.

“Judges Engoron and Kaplan, also of New York, are equally Corrupt, only in different ways,” Trump wrote, attempting to tie court cases in which he, a former real estate mogul, reality TV star, and indicted former president, was tried for his own misconduct, to the liberties of the average American. “What these THUGS are doing is AN ATTACK ON THE REPUBLICAN PARTY, AND OUR ONCE GREAT NATION ITSELF. OUR FIRST AMENDMENT MUST STAND, FREE AND STRONG. ‘GIVE ME LIBERTY OR GIVE ME DEATH!’”

The MAGA people must be thinking, "Dear Lord, they are going to kill President Trump, and God sent him to save America and keep us a Christian nation. We've got to do something."

What happens next? All we know for sure is that the stage is set for dramatic action. From the TNR report:

Donald Trump’s big mouth in the hush-money trial has so far cost him $9,000 and earned him a formal warning about the possibility of jail time if he continues to violate the gag. In the days since Trump was last formally warned, he has come pretty close to breaching the order—including deleting a post about Stormy Daniels moments before she was set to take the stand. It remains to be seen if his latest post—which seems to lambast witnesses in the case as “sleazebags” and “lowlifes”—will constitute another violation.

Trump is accused of using Cohen to sweep an affair with porn actress Stormy Daniels under the rug ahead of the 2016 presidential election. The Republican presidential nominee faces 34 felony charges in this case for allegedly falsifying business records with the intent to further an underlying crime. Trump has pleaded not guilty on all counts.

Inside Rikers Island (New York Post)