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The judge who presided over Donald Trump’s criminal hush money trial in Manhattan agreed to partially lift a gag order on the former president. This decision allows Trump to speak freely about the witnesses in the case and the jury that found him guilty of 34 felony counts of falsifying business records.

“Circumstances have now changed,” Judge Juan Merchan wrote. “The trial portion of these proceedings ended when the verdict was rendered, and the jury discharged.”

Last month, Trump was convicted of 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in connection with a 2016 hush money payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels to enhance his electoral prospects in the 2016 presidential election, ABC News reported.

Throughout the trial, Trump and his attorneys expressed their dissatisfaction with a stipulation in the judge’s limited gag order that forbade them from publicly responding to commentary about the case from witnesses in the proceedings, including Daniels and Trump’s former attorney, Michael Cohen.

Merchan limited the public statements that Trump could make about them and other parties involved in the case to protect the integrity of the trial.

The judge’s ruling on Tuesday maintained the gag order’s protective provisions for the court staff, District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s staff, and their families.

“Until sentence is imposed, all individuals covered by Paragraph (b)” — referring to members of the court staff, the district attorney’s staff and their families — “must continue to perform their lawful duties free from threats, intimidation, harassment, and harm,” Merchan wrote in the ruling.

Although he struck the portion of the gag order about jurors, Merchan wrote that it would be his “strong preference” to extend those protections because there remains “ample evidence to justify continued concern for the jurors.”

There will be no change to the previous prohibition on the disclosure of personal information regarding jurors.

The sentencing of Trump in this case is scheduled for July 11.

Reports broke this week that Trump is choosing only three possible running mates.

Following a video of Trump saying that he had already made up his mind about who he would pick but hadn’t told anyone yet, CNN’s Alayna Treene said she thought he had narrowed down his original list to a much smaller group, Mediaite reported.

“There’s so much speculation right now and a lot of anticipation over who Donald Trump is going to ultimately select. And this is the language we’ve heard Donald Trump say for a while, he’s often said that he knows who his choice is going to be,” Treene said.

“However, from my conversations with Donald Trump’s team, they’re still not completely, or they haven’t come to a formal decision yet on who he is going to select as his running mate. What I do know is that he has really narrowed his list to three top contenders: That is Doug Burgum, J.D. Vance and Marco Rubio, all people that they believe currently are at the top of his list,” Treene added.

“But of course, this is Donald Trump we’re talking about. Whenever we try to predict who a candidate will pick for VP, it’s always a difficult task. It’s even harder with Donald Trump. And again, when I talk to his team, they say he is someone who changes his mind every day based on who he sees on TV, who he speaks with over the phone. And so until he formally makes his announcement, Donald Trump can change his mind up until the last minute,” she continued.

Reports on Trump’s reported “VP list” have been changing and all over the place for months.

Other recent reports speculated that Trump’s original VP list included not just the three finalists, but Senators Tim Scott (R-SC) and Tom Cotton (R-AR) as well as Reps. Byron Donalds (R-FL) and Elise Stefanik (R-NY).

Former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Ben Carson has also been mentioned.

WATCH:

Trump announced this week that he has chosen his vice president.

The former president declined to name the pick but said he had decided who it would be when he spoke to reporters before his rally in Philadelphia on Saturday.

“Trump tells me and @DashaBurns just now: – He’s picked his VP – He hasn’t told them yet – They’ll be at the debate,” NBC News reporter Jake Traylor said on X, formerly Twitter.

“This time Trump’s calculus will be much different than it was during his last two campaigns,” New York Magazine’s Intelligencer column noted.

“Unlike in 2016, he can pretty much choose whoever he wants (within reason). Assuming the primary continues on its current trajectory, he will owe his nomination to no particular party faction; that means there’s no significant bloc of intraparty opposition that he must appease the way conservative evangelicals needed to be placated with Mike Pence,” the outlet noted.

“Trump also has to think about his legacy. Since he’s limited to two terms, his veep will be the prohibitive front-runner in 2028 if Republicans win,” the column continued.

“Even if they don’t take back the White House, the vice presidential choice is Trump’s best opportunity to designate a successor not only as party leader but as the chieftain of the MAGA movement,” the column added.

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