An appeals court in Washington DC decided on Friday to ease the ‘gag order’ imposed on former President Donald Trump (2017-2021) to prevent him from making certain comments about one of the many lawsuits filed against him.

The court upheld that order last October, but noted that it should not bar the former president from speaking out about the special counsel handling the case, Jack Smith.

In a 68-page document, the court upheld Judge Tanya Chutkan’s decision to ban Trump from commenting on witnesses and lawyers involved in the case. lawsuit he faces as he seeks to overturn the 2020 election results.

“We agree with the court that several aspects of Trump’s public comments pose an immediate and significant threat” to the ongoing criminal proceedings, the ruling said.

However, the letter noted that the original gag order restricted much more speech “than necessary” and “should not have restricted comment or expression about the special counsel.”

Trump spoke out hours later in a statement claiming that even though the order has been relaxed, he is being denied the right “right granted by the First Amendment” to speak out against ‘attacks on democracy’, for which, according to the Republican politician, ‘corrupt Joe Biden’ is ‘the greatest threat’.

“We are quickly becoming a country where telling the truth is a crime,” said the former president, who announced he will appeal the case to the Supreme Court.

Trump’s lawyers have already filed an appeal with the appeals court after Judge Chutkan ruled “gag order” in October.

The former president is charged in Washington DC with four counts: conspiracy to defraud the United States, conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, obstruction and attempted obstruction of an official proceeding, and conspiracy against rights.

He faces a maximum prison sentence of five years for the first of these charges, 20 years for the second and third, and 10 years for the fourth, respectively.

The indictment details that after losing the November 3, 2020 election to Democrat Joe Biden, the then-president began a conspiracy to “overturning the legitimate results of the 2020 presidential election″with false accusations of election fraud and multiple devious strategies.

The trial is expected to begin on March 4, although the former president’s defense is making every effort to postpone the trial. (JO)