Some people just can't shut up

Over at Michigan Advance, reporter Anna Liz Nichols writes…

Michigan Judge Kristen Simmons, while presiding over the case against several individuals facing felony charges for submitting false electoral votes for former President Donald Trump in 2020, began court Tuesday with a warning: Cut the social media posts.

“If it appears that you’re taking a photo, I’m going to have to take your phone and have it searched because we’re not going to have witnesses being intimidated when they’re coming in here under a subpoena to give testimony nor will I have to be taking time away from my judicial duties to address commentary made on Facebook posts. It’s juvenile and it’s ridiculous,” Simmons said.

Apparently, it’s endemic amongst Republican minions as their Loudmouth-In-Chief was requested and ordered to do the exact same thing. Strategy? Egomania? Megalomania?

No one in the courtroom was singled out by Simmons, but her comments followed an in-chambers meeting with Nick Somberg, the lawyer for Meshawn Maddock, a defendant in the case and former Michigan Republican Party co-chair.

Somberg told media outside of court he was called into the judge’s chamber ahead of court Tuesday with the Assistant Attorney General’s on the prosecution’s side to discuss a Facebook post he had made. The post was in regards to testimony from James Renner, a member of the group who had his criminal charges dropped as part of a cooperation agreement with the Attorney General’s Office to testify in the case. […] “He testified publicly; it’s no secret that he is an Informant or snitch,” Somberg said. “Nothing I said was disparaging.”

Last I remember from way back in elementary school, the word “snitch”, applicable or not, was disparaging. ¯_(ツ)_/¯