Last night, Trump’s lawyers asked Florida-based Trump appointee Judge Aileen Cannon for an indefinite postponement of the documents trial. Their rationale underscores exactly why Trump is running again — to avoid accountability. (NYT gift link here)
“This extraordinary case presents a serious challenge to both the fact and perception of our American democracy,” wrote the lawyers, Chris M. Kise and Todd Blanche for Mr. Trump, and Stanley Woodward Jr. and Sasha Dadan for Mr. Nauta.
“The court now presides over a prosecution advanced by the administration of a sitting president against his chief political rival, himself a leading candidate for the presidency of the United States,” they wrote. “Therefore, a measured consideration and timeline that allows for a careful and complete review of the procedures that led to this indictment and the unprecedented legal issues presented herein best serves the interests of the defendants and the public…”
The article says judges’ rulings on trial schedules aren’t usually reviewable. But if Cannon goes rogue to protect Trump as she did in an earlier phase of the investigation, Smith’s prosecutors could conceivably challenge a scheduling decision by appealing to the 11th Circuit.
Also from the filing — Trump and Nauta are too busy to be criminal defendants in a trial!
“President Trump is running for president of the United States and is currently the likely Republican Party nominee,” they wrote. “This undertaking requires a tremendous amount of time and energy, and that effort will continue until the election on Nov. 5, 2024.”
“Mr. Nauta’s job requires him to accompany President Trump during most campaign trips around the country,” they continued. “This schedule makes trial preparation with both of the defendants challenging. Such preparation requires significant planning and time.”
My understanding is the two are being tried together. Would it be possible for Cannon to rule that Trump can have a postponement since he’s currently his party’s leading candidate for the nomination but that Nauta’s trial can proceed since Trump could simply hire another flunky to hold his baggy-ass coat and schlep boxes around? I have no idea how that works.
My guess is Trump would be against separate trials since he’s afraid Nauta might flip. But if that sort of ruling is possible, it might be a way for Cannon to shield Trump from timely accountability while preserving the appearance of evenhandedness by allowing the Nauta trial to move forward. We’ll see.
In other news, Cannon is proceeding as if the trial will be held in Ft. Pierce, where she’s based. That could change due to logistics for such a large scale circus. But if the trial is held in Ft. Pierce, prosecutors will have more MAGA cultists in the jury pool. Ft. Pierce itself is purple-ish, IIRC, but the surrounding counties are about as Trumpy as my part of Florida.
That said, I do thinkTrump voters could be persuaded to convict if the prosecution proves its case. I’ve been a juror and have always been impressed by how seriously random citizens take their civic duty. But MAGA cultists are another story; they don’t give a shit about American democracy.
Feel free to speculate herein or talk about whatever — open thread!