A former White House staffer said Thursday that Donald Trump's family and allies might have started accompanying him to court in an effort to keep him under control.
Speaking to MSNBC, deputy press secretary Sarah Matthews said that Trump is likely "lashing out" at his lawyers and other aides in his hush money trial because he has little personal support with him in court.
"Look, he's someone who's all about branding and optics, and he knows it's not necessarily the best look that he hasn't had his family by his side the first couple of weeks, that there aren't crowds of protesters outside supporting him," Matthews told host Chris Jansing.
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She explained that Trump "feeds" off of the energy of crowds, so not having them is likely influencing his mood.
"So, for that to not assemble outside the courthouse is probably disappointing to him, and putting him in a bad mood," she surmised. "And, so, then he's lashing out at aides. And that's why now, this week, you're seeing folks come and support him, and be by his side, whether it's aides or surrogates and family members."
She pointed to Trump's son Eric, who became the first family member to sit with his dad in the trial when he accompanied him this week.
He and other family members will likely begin to appear in the coming weeks, along with other political supporters — such as ally Boris Epshteyn and Texas Governor Greg Abbott, who also attended this week.
"They'll continue to try to bring people to be around him so he feels a little bit less embarrassed about the situation," continued Matthews.
She doesn't think that Melania Trump will turn up, however.
"Look, she hasn't even campaigned with him yet," explained Matthews. "I don't think when we're talking about a case where he made a hush money payment to a porn star, or had an affair with her, and then paid her off because he had this affair just days after Melania gave birth to their son. I wouldn't imagine that she wants to sit through a trial like this."
Others will likely show, but not Melania, she said.
Trump faces 34 felony counts involving falsifying business records to cover up the payments to adult film star Stormy Daniels. He denies the allegations.
See her comments below or at the link here.
Trump aide expects he's "lashing out" at aides youtu.be
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