Roger Stone says he shouldn't be subject to a gag order because he's less popular on Instagram than Kim Kardashian
Special Counsel Robert Mueller's office said Friday it would support a "narrowly-tailored" gag order for Roger Stone, President Trump's longtime adviser and friend who last month was indicted by Mueller's team on seven counts, including obstruction of an official proceeding, witness tampering, and making false statements.
"The order would be supported by a finding that there is a substantial likelihood that extrajudicial comments by trial participants will undermine a fair trial," Mueller's team said. The statement cited recent television appearances in which Stone discussed "the merits of the charges, the nature of the evidence, the identity and credibility of trial witnesses, and the motives of the prosecution."
Stone objected to the proposal via his attorneys, arguing that public comment on politics and men's fashion is his job, so a gag order would interfere with his ability to earn a living. He also deployed the classic "I'm less famous than Kim Kardashian" defense.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
"While Roger Stone may be familiar to those who closely follow American politics, he is hardly ubiquitous in the larger landscape of popular consciousness," Stone's lawyers wrote. "An example of how limited and narrow his public presence is, is that Kim Kardashian has 59.5 million followers on Twitter. By contrast, Roger Stone has no Twitter account at all and, thus has no Twitter followers. On Instagram, Kim Kardashian has 126 million followers. Roger Stone’s Instagram following amounts to 39 thousand subscribers."
Stone is not on Twitter because the social network suspended his account in 2017. His Instagram account, where Stone is marketing "Roger Stone did nothing wrong" shirts, is indeed less popular than that of the most ubiquitous reality television star of the last decade.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Bonnie Kristian was a deputy editor and acting editor-in-chief of TheWeek.com. She is a columnist at Christianity Today and author of Untrustworthy: The Knowledge Crisis Breaking Our Brains, Polluting Our Politics, and Corrupting Christian Community (forthcoming 2022) and A Flexible Faith: Rethinking What It Means to Follow Jesus Today (2018). Her writing has also appeared at Time Magazine, CNN, USA Today, Newsweek, the Los Angeles Times, and The American Conservative, among other outlets.
-
Can Republicans navigate their narrow House majority?
In the Spotlight This isn't the first time that a party has had no margin for error
By David Faris Published
-
How does Inauguration Day work?
The Explainer Part Constitution, part tradition
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
When does a Roth 401(k) make more sense?
The Explainer There are several key differences between a Roth 401(k) and a 401(k) that may make one option more beneficial than the other
By Becca Stanek, The Week US Published
-
Honda and Nissan in merger talks
Speed Read The companies are currently Japan's second and third-biggest automakers, respectively
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Taylor Swift wraps up record-shattering Eras tour
Speed Read The pop star finally ended her long-running tour in Vancouver, Canada
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Drake claims illegal boosting, defamation
Speed Read The rapper accused Universal Music of boosting Kendrick Lamar's diss track and said UMG allowed him to be falsely accused of pedophilia
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
'Wicked' and 'Gladiator II' ignite holiday box office
Speed Read The combination of the two movies revitalized a struggling box office
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Jussie Smollet conviction overturned on appeal
Speed Read The Illinois Supreme Court overturned the actor's conviction on charges of staging a racist and homophobic attack against himself in 2019
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Quincy Jones, music icon, is dead at 91
Speed Read The legendary producer is perhaps best known as the architect behind Michael Jackson's 'Thriller'
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
OJ Simpson, star athlete tried for murder, dead at 76
Speed Read The former football hero and murder suspect lost his battle with cancer
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Momofuku's 'Chili Crunch' trademark uproar
Speed Read The company's attempt to own the sole rights has prompted backlash
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published