So much happened this week on almost all Trump fronts! Fortunately the days are longer now which gives me more energy to keep up. A quick recap:
Fulton County, GA: Judge Scott McAfee dismissed six counts in the sprawling RICO case brought by Fani Willis, stating that the indictment lacked the specificity needed for the elements of those crimes. The ruling dropped three of the charges against Trump, leaving him with ten charges remaining. The dismissals also left Mark Meadows with only one RICO charge, and Renato and I discuss in this week’s podcast how this could be problematic for the case.
Also in Fulton County, GA: Eclipsing the coverage of his earlier ruling, Judge McAffee ruled on Friday that there was no actual conflict of interest arising from the personal relationship between Willis and the special prosecutor she hired in the case, Nathan Wade. However, he stated that their relationship created an “appearance of impropriety” created by the relationship and ordered on of them to step aside. If Willis were to step aside, her entire office would have been precluded from handling the case; Wade has since stepped down. I know I’m an outlier in my opinion on this whole saga and while I get that sometimes we don’t act rationally in matters of the heart, this was a colossal failure in judgment on Willis’ part and Wade should have just stepped down a while ago and let the case proceed with all this drama. There, I said it.
Meanwhile, back at the ranch in Manhattan, NY: Judge Juan Merchan has delayed the Stormy Daniels/election interference case (I refuse to call it a “hush money case”) 20 days, due to the production of over 100,000 pages relating to the matter by the Southern District of New York (which as you’ll recall, prosecuted Michael Cohen under federal law for his role in the same set of facts). D.A. Alvin Bragg had requested these documents A YEAR AGO but the U.S. Attorney’s office there had refused to turn them over. Then Trump issued a subpoena for them, and lo and behold, here they are two weeks before his trial was set to begin. It’s great to know that Merrick Garland’s DOJ is totally on board with Trump’s delay tactics (that was said with sarcasm and an eye roll).
In Mar-a-Lago: Judge Aileen Cannon denied Trump’s motion to dismiss some of the charges against him, rejecting his argument that the Espionage Act was “unconstitutionally vague.” But don’t be too quick to conclude that she’s had a chance of heart and is getting off the Trump Train: She noted that it was “premature” to decide those issues at this point, leaving open that similar arguments could be raised later in the process (which would, of course, take up more time). She also has yet to rule on Trump’s crazy “Presidential Records Act” defense, something about which I made a video post last year if you need a refresher: I call it a smart defense for dumb people.
Finally, Mike Pence dropped a bombshell yesterday that he would not be endorsing Trump for 2024. I guess someone finally told him that Trump had wanted him hanged on January 6.
More to come on some of the above in next week’s podcast, and some of it discussed here:
My guest podcast appearances this week:
This was recorded a while ago but I had a lot of fun disecting the Hunter Biden Laptop conspiracy with former CIA officers John Sipher and Jerry O’Shea for their Mission Implausible podcast (you can read my free Substack post on it here)
Other articles worth reading:
I’ve written before — and my previous Book Club author, Steve Vladek has gone into greater depth — about how conservatives looking to change the law through the courts have been gaming the system to “judge shop” and bring their cases in front of activist judged in Texas. This Vox article by Ian Millhiser explains how some new changes by the Judicial Conference of the United States is going to curb that practice.
Upcoming events:
Zoom Office Hours, Wednesday, March 20, 5-6 p.m. EDT. We’ll discuss the latest. Zoom link will be sent to paid subscribers at 2 p.m. Office hours discussions are not recorded.
Guest Speaker Barb McQuade, Thursday, March 28, 4 p.m. EDT. Barb will be a guest speaker for my class, Preserving Democracy in the (Dis)Information Age. Barb is about to release her book, Attack from Within: How Disinformation is Sabotaging America, and I’m excited to get her perspective on where we are as we head into the 2024 election. Zoom link will be sent to paid subscribers three hours before the discussion, and will be recorded and posted for paid subscribers the following day.
NEW DATE AND TIME! Freedom Academy Book Club, Friday, April 19, 12 p.m. EDT. We’ll be discussing Gun Country: Gun Capitalism, Culture, and Control in Cold War America with author Andrew McKevitt. Drew’s book illuminates how our society became so saturated with guns, and how gun ownership intersects with race, politics, and money. This discussion will be recorded and posted for paid subscribers.
Enjoy the extra sunlight, everyone!
Hi Asha, I agree with you that it was "a colossal failure in judgment on Willis’ part". I don't understand why she didn't explicitly anticipate that Trump would tell his lackeys to find dirt on her or any hint of dirt cause that's who he is and that's what he does. He plays dirty. I thought everyone knew that.
Now there are two outliers.
Sorry for the delayed commentary, but as always, excellent insight. A particularly interesting point is the refusal to use the term "hush money trial"....it may be an exciting (lurid and tawdry?!) term that sells newspapers (20 plus years ago...and now invite "clicks" I must remember!), but the fact of the matter is that it is leading. Journalism's objective is objectivity itself (thus eliminating Fox entirely from the competition due to hours of unabashed opinion coupled with heavy "Conservative" emphasis). Unfortunately, too many writer's adopt the headline grabber to get the scandal-seeker National Enquirer crowd at tshe expense of integrity. Judge Cannon needs to go. She throws small bones to Jack Smith in an effort to maintain an appearance of objectivity to the public, but everyone needs to view this with a great deal of skepticism. The Justice Department remains excessively patient in an effort to appease right-wingers, but they will never be satisfied. SC Smith can only be patient for so long with the table scraps. Early on, I thought how Merrick Garland was not seated on the Supreme Court was fortuitous because he was fated to lead the Justice Department....unfortunately, he seems excessively methodical to the point of serious fault by appeasing right-wingers. The right-wing, as reflected by the representatives in Congress, will never be satisfied with anything, and to try to win favor with them is a fool's errand. Leadership is entirely regressive. Garland won't be fired at this point during an election year and while he is involved in cases against a leading candidate, but in the event Biden wins against Trump (I can't believe I have to say that in 2024), the new Administration will not include Garland. Think nice thoughts, everyone! Let none of us allow the toxicity bring own hopes down.