Judge Merchan Removed from Steve Bannon Case

I don't know if this is good or bad for Trump adviser Steve Bannon, but he will have a new judge in the “We Build the Wall” case.

Bannon and Trump had both been assigned Judge Merchan in their respective cases.

However, Merchan has reportedly been removed from Bannon’s case due to a conflicting schedule.

He’s Out

Reports surfaced on Tuesday that the presiding judge would be changed.

For those of you not familiar, Bannon and several other pro-Trump surrogates had started a fundraising campaign to continue the construction of the border wall called “We Build the Wall.”

The founders of the group were later charged with numerous crimes, including money laundering, conspiracy, and fraud.

Bannon pleaded not guilty to all charges during his initial hearing.

The announcement that Merchan was being removed from the case was announced by Judge Ellen Biben.

She stated, “Merchan … who is assigned to this matter, is engaged to preside over a six-defendant trial that is scheduled to commence on 09/16/24 and expected to last at least three months.”

Judge April Newbauer has been assigned the case, a Governor Andrew Cuomo appointee.

As I stated, I am not sure if this is a good or bad thing for Bannon. There is not much information available on Newbauer, but we obviously know the history of Merchan.

He has proven to be more than biased in the Trump case, giving Trump and his defense team very little wiggle room during the hush-money case as well as denying virtually every motion made by Trump’s team.

The only time he gave even a little was in removing some of the restrictions on Trump’s gag order so he could fight back during the debate.

Based on that, I would think Bannon will be happy with the change in judges for his case.