Trump arrives in court, says ‘gag order has to come off’

Former President Donald Trump opened the fourth day of jury selection in his hush-money trial Friday by calling on the New York court to lift the gag order on speaking about witnesses.

Mr. Trump said it’s unfair that he’s not allowed to speak out even as his critics go after him.

“I have a lot to say to you, and I’m not allowed to say it. And I’m the only one,” Mr. Trump said in the Manhattan courthouse hallway. “Everyone else can say whatever they want about me. They can say anything they want. They can continue to make up lies and everything else. They lie. They’re real scum.”

State Supreme Court Judge Juan Merchan wants to finish jury selection Friday and hold opening arguments Monday.

The court has sworn in a jury of seven men and five women but needs to stock the panel with six alternates. One alternate was chosen Thursday, leaving five to go.

The first potential juror to address the court Friday said she had bad anxiety and wouldn’t want people to know she was a juror on the famous case. She was excused.

“I take medicine for it. The more days that go on and more and more people in my life know that I’m here — without me even telling them, they just put pieces together,” she said.

Mr. Trump faces 34 counts of falsifying business records in the case brought by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg.

Prosecutors allege Mr. Trump funneled payments to his lawyer Michael Cohen to conceal hush money paid to porn star Stormy Daniels and two others to avoid bad press around the 2016 election.

Ms. Daniels says she had a sexual encounter with Mr. Trump nearly two decades ago, a claim he denies.

Mr. Trump pleaded not guilty to the criminal charges and says Democratic prosecutors are trying to stop his presidential campaign.

“I’m sitting in a courthouse all day long,” he said. “This is going on for the week and it will go up for another four or five weeks. And it’s very unfair. And people know it’s very unfair. The gag order has to come off.”