Politico: Trump-appointed Judge Slowing Down Key Indictment

It would appear that Judge Ailieen Cannon is in no hurry to get Trump’s classified documents case into the courtroom, at least that is the narrative that Politico is pitching right now.

Cannon just shot down a motion by Special Counsel Jack Smith to have Trump’s legal team submit its roster of classified documents it will use during the trial as part of Trump’s defense.

Pundits are now suggesting that she is doing this to help delay the case for Trump, possibly until after the election.

Slowing It Down

Trump has not had any friendly judges during his legal ordeals, save Judge Cannon, but she has not exactly helped.

I would characterize this more as holding a standard and not hurting Trump, such as we have seen with Judge Engoron and Judge Chutkan.

Both of those judges clearly have an axe to grind with Trump, and it has shown in their rulings thus far in their respective cases, not to mention some statements made by Engoron which clearly show he has made up his mind in the fraud case already.

When Smith wanted a December deadline from Trump’s legal team and Cannon shot it down, choosing to defer to her March hearing, many took that as a sign that she had no intention of making the May trial date.

Oddly enough, even I had stated that based on the wording of the motion by Smith’s team, it could be the Special Counsel that asks for a delay rather than Trump.

Cannon has denied Trump’s legal team’s requests to delay the case, which would clearly be seen as Cannon cutting Trump a break or bias toward Trump since he appointed her.

This approach, however, is being called “stealth.”

For instance, Brian Greer, a former Central Intelligence Agency attorney, stated, “It could be seen as a stealth attempt to delay the ultimate trial date without actually announcing that yet.

“There’s pretty much no chance they could go to trial on May 20 with the current schedule.”

Cannon’s integrity is now openly being called into question, with former Mueller deputy Andrew Weissmann stating, “Judge Cannon’s bias is showing over and over again.”

There is a lot to legally unpack if this trial gets delayed until after the election and if Trump wins the general election.

For instance, some believe if this plays out that way, Trump’s Attorney General could withdraw the charges, but I am pretty sure that would lead to another impeachment effort if Democrats have control of Congress.

All this is mute, of course, if Trump somehow loses the primary election.

Regardless, expect Cannon to be singled out by pundits and Democrats solely for the fact she was appointed by Trump. It will mean nothing if her legal decisions actually make sense, as she will only be judged on whether she is making a ruling that could help Trump in any possible way.