Friend, 

It was only a matter of time. If Trump opening his mouth when told to just shut up was a bet in Vegas, we’d put the mortgage on it. The funny thing? It’s not even like he’s banned from talking altogether, or even testifying. He’s been very clearly instructed to stop talking about people within the court system and their families. Seems easy enough, but the world continues to give Trump too much credit. Asking The Donald to do anything is wasted breath.

The other day, he did it for the tenth time. He’s been found in contempt ten times. This carries a measly $1,000 fine and nothing more. Because we’re not barred by a gag order, we’ll say it: why hasn’t the judge thrown this buffoon in jail yet? Why isn’t he making license plates and eating creamed corn every day? Why is he seemingly allowed to rack up infinite gag order violations and come out with a very minor scrape? Well, it could very well be that the eleventh time is the charm for ol’ Donnie.

Even though the judge has made it clear that he doesn’t want to throw a former president in jail, he said on Monday that it’s becoming more of a possibility. It could be that the eleventh violation is the charm. We know that Judge Merchan dreams of just making it through this case as smoothly as possible, but we have dreams too. So naturally, we want Trump to keep talking.

Either way though, we realize that we need to stop to smell the roses. Every day that Trump drifts off in that New York City courtroom is a day where he can’t be on the campaign trail. One where he can’t hold his stupid rallies. One where little by little, he’s falling behind in the polls. Are we too greedy if we’d rather him be in a jail cell for a few of those days?

Take it from us: Running a campaign is a full-time job. It’s not like selling steaks out of a mall storefront or tanking three casinos at once. It involves talking to voters, crafting a real agenda, and, most importantly, traveling the country. All of these things are pretty hard to do if you’re sleeping four days out of the week in the same place.

So, our message to Trump? Follow your instincts. Keep ignoring court orders. Stay in the mentality that this will all blow over. It’d be really great if your typical antics could drag this case all the way to the end of the year. Because every day in court is a loss for the Trump campaign.

And while he’s rotting in Manhattan, we’ll keep pushing. We’ll keep spreading the word, growing the movement, and figuring out new ways to get under his skin. We’re under six months out, and we could use your help to finish strong >>

-The Lincoln Project