Trump SCREWS HIMSELF in federal court
Brian Tyler Cohen
Oct 23, 2024
3.39M subscribers ... 1,200,945 views ... 58K likes
The Legal Breakdown with Glenn Kirschner
Legal Breakdown episode 399: @GlennKirschner2 discusses the implications of Judge Cannon's name appearing on a shortlist to be Trump's attorney general on the ongoing Florida prosecution.
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The Legal Breakdown with Glenn Kirschner
Transcript
- 0:00
- you're watching the legal breakdown
- Glenn Donald Trump may have just lost
- himself the friendliest judge in the
- entire country with what I think is a
- major misstep can you explain what just
- happened here yeah Brian on the legal
- front Donald Trump is always His Own
- Worst Enemy uh there there's been some
- reporting that Donald Trump and his
- transition team are considering aen
- Cannon to be Donald Trump's attorney
- general now this is really a big deal
- for a couple of reasons one she has
- Absolut absolutely no qualifications to
- be attorney general but we'll set that
- one aside for the moment two by Donald
- Trump considering her and by this
- information being announced or being
- leaked being reported Donald Trump has
- probably finally done what is necessary
- to have her kicked off the case now some
- people might say well there is no case
- at the moment because judge Cannon
- dismissed Donald Trump's unlawful
- retention of classified documents
- 1:00
- obstruction of justice Espionage case
- and yes she did but she did it in a
- lawless way she did it in a way that is
- unsupported by any precedent so I'm
- fairly confident the 11 circuit court of
- appeals which is where the case is
- presently will reverse her dismissal
- will reinstate the case send it back to
- the trial court put it back on the trial
- track and now I think it is all but
- certain judge aen Cannon will not not be
- the presiding judge you know Brian we've
- all waited for a very long time to see
- if Jack Smith would file a motion to
- recuse to remove her from the case after
- one she was appointed to the bench by
- Donald Trump her benefactor a very cushy
- and prestigious lifetime appointment as
- a federal judge two she was reversed by
- the appeals court not once but twice
- early on in these proceedings why
- because she abused her judicial
- 2:01
- discretion and did something the law did
- not allow to the extreme advantage of
- Donald Trump and now she's gone and done
- it again she dismissed his classified
- documents case with no legal basis to do
- it so now that she is apparently being
- considered to be Attorney General of the
- United States and that decision resides
- in the hands of Donald Trump the
- defendant in the classified documents
- case I don't think there is anybody who
- can say you know what her impartiality
- cannot possibly be questioned it can be
- questioned and with good cause so I
- think this seals the deal and I do not
- think we're going to see alen Cannon
- presiding in the classified documents
- case any longer once the 11 circuit
- court of appeals Returns the case to the
- trial court well Glenn you know that the
- Trump team is going to look at this
- decision this this inevitable decision
- 3:01
- um not to return it to judge Canon and
- just say we don't stand by any of that
- reporting it was just the fake news is
- just the perception of of her
- impropriety is just the fact that this
- story exists enough unto itself for uh
- for the 11 circuit to still regardless
- of what Trump's team says to still
- refuse to give it to judge Canon great
- question and the answer is no why is the
- answer a definitive no because if you
- had to sort of jump every shadow of
- reporting that was unconfirmed maybe it
- was a product of Russian disinformation
- who knows but if anytime anybody sort of
- put in the Public Square oh a president
- is considering something with respect to
- a judge just you know by virtue of the
- fact that that information is in the
- Public Square doesn't make it reliable
- enough for a judge to order um a lower
- court judge to remove herself from a
- case but here's what by the way is is a
- is a good thing by the way because then
- 4:00
- any purveyor of disinformation can just
- say something hoping to sway the case
- one way or the other but then that
- raises the obvious question why is this
- different why will the ABC News Report
- um actually have some heft as opposed to
- just as opposed to just you know the
- story being put into the news by anybody
- yeah great question a couple of reasons
- one it is the cumulative effect even if
- no one fact standing alone would open
- her impartiality up to being questioned
- which is the Federal Federal standard
- let me recite it even though we've done
- this before and our viewers may be
- familiar with the statute 28 United
- States code 455 for those of you scoring
- at home the language that requires a
- judge to recuse from a case is if the
- judge's impartiality might reasonably be
- questioned then the judge shall
- disqualify themselves remove themselves
- from the case it's a fairly low bar and
- it can be courtesy of the cumulative
- effect of lots of different facts like
- 5:02
- being appointed by the defendant like
- abusing your judicial discretion twice
- in favor of the defendant like
- dismissing the defendant's case with no
- legal basis to do it and then being
- reversed again and now on top of it
- being considered for an enormously
- prestigious job the Attorney General of
- the United States the cumulative effect
- of that I think warrants um at least
- serious litigation now let me get to the
- litigation peace Prime cuz I think we
- just discussed how you know a rank rumor
- or completely um unreliable reporting
- about something doesn't mean that judges
- have to recuse or be removed from a case
- in knee-jerk fashion however I think if
- there is a motion to recuse filed and
- perhaps even if there's not there will
- have to be litigation just because ABC
- News reported it as coming out of or you
- know being a product of Donald Trump's
- transition team Boris epin is the person
- 6:02
- that I saw named in the reporting as
- being involved on the transition team um
- there will have to be litigation to
- drill down and see if this reporting is
- accurate is factual and if in fact
- Donald Trump has considered or will
- consider aen Cannon to be the attorney
- general in the extremely unlikely event
- Donald Trump retakes the Reigns of
- governmental power wins the election so
- this matter will have to be litigated
- and there will have to be a ruling and
- then you know I suspect given the
- cumulative effect judge Canon will never
- see another day presiding over Donald
- Trump's classified documents case Glenn
- who will ultimately make this decision
- to remove judge Kennan from the case we
- have you know you and I have sat here
- and kind of puzzled at the fact that
- Jack Smith even despite all of these
- instances where judge Cannon's
- impartiality might reasonably be
- questioned isn't isn't the statement of
- the century and yet all that time he
- 7:01
- refused to go ahead and attempt it even
- up to and including the point at which
- he just dismissed the case outright on
- some bogus pretense that all of a sudden
- special councils are unconstitutional
- even though they've been used since the
- 1800s but but that aside he has refused
- to do it and so and so who ultimately is
- going to make this decision is it going
- to be the 11 circuit supon or is it
- going to be Jack Smith who will finally
- Dain to acknowledge objective reality
- that perhaps uh judge Canon is not an
- impartial Arbiter of the law here yeah
- another great question um and this will
- probably be an unsatisfying answer
- because there are four possibilities
- regarding who will make the decision so
- the first is the 11th Circuit Court of
- Appeals they have the case right now on
- appeal regarding judge Cannon's Lawless
- in my opinion dismissal of Donald
- Trump's criminal case so they could very
- well say listen one we reverse judge
- Canon for yet again getting it wrong to
- Donald Trump's extreme advantage and we
- 8:02
- are supon on our own sending this case
- back remanding it to the trial court
- with the direction that it be assigned
- to a new judge a fair independent
- impartial judge I have seen federal
- circuit courts of appeal do that um so
- that's the first possibility the 11th
- circuit does it on their own the next
- possibility is the 11 circuit sends it
- back to a judge and orders that there be
- litigation
- on the question of whether she should
- remain the judge on the case
- particularly given one the reversal of
- the dismissal if that's what the 11
- circuit does and two the reporting about
- Donald Trump considering Canon to be his
- attorney general now there are two
- possibilities once it goes back to the
- trial court they could return it to
- judge Cannon and say listen in the first
- instance the federal law contemplates
- that you judge Canon will decide whether
- your impartiality now might reasonably
- 9:01
- be questions s such that you shall
- disqualify yourself so they could do
- that and they could let judge Cannon
- decide in the first instance of course
- if you refused to recuse that might go
- back up to the 11th circuit and they
- would have that question directly before
- them or they could actually remand it to
- a different trial court judge to
- litigate the issue of whether judge
- Canon should be removed should recuse
- because of the cumulative effect of all
- of these circumstances so that's three
- and the fourth of course ultimately who
- might decide this question the Supreme
- Court and given that they have shown
- themselves not to be fair Brokers of the
- law you know all bets are off as to what
- they will do if they get the recusal
- issue before them but those are the four
- possibilities the 11 Circuit Judge Canon
- an independent judge to make the
- decision about whe whether judge Canon
- should be removed D ultimately the
- 10:00
- Supreme Court so lots of cooks in that
- legal kitchen and for this issue to even
- be considered does somebody have to
- bring It Forward does Jack Smith have to
- file a motion for example or or file
- some evidence including this ABC news
- story or are the judges just going to on
- the 11 circuit just going to know that
- this story broke and so they'll do it
- unto themselves yeah that's another good
- question and so so much of this is sort
- of uncharted waters because we're
- dealing with Prosecuting a criminal
- former president for stealing our
- nation's most closely guard guarded
- Secrets really for the first time in our
- nation's history so listen if the 11
- circuit reverses judge Cannon's
- dismissal but sends it back to judge
- Cannon without comment well then Jack
- Smith had better get his motion writing
- pen out and write that dang motion to
- recuse and litigate the factual basis
- for the reporting that Donald Trump is
- considering Canon his attorney general
- 11:01
- because that is disqualifying with the
- defendant holding in his hands the
- possibility of giving this judge who's
- presiding over his prosecution you know
- the very prestigious job of Attorney
- General of the United States I'm sorry
- in anybody's book that's got to be
- disqualifying and do will we know will
- it be public if Jack Smith if and when
- Jack Smith does file this motion yes
- there is absolutely no basis to file
- this seal because it won't involve an
- ongoing investigation it won't
- compromise witness security there is no
- lawful basis there's actually a I
- believe six-part test if something is to
- be filed under seal and this doesn't
- meet any of the elements to be filed
- under seal given your experience as a
- 30-year Federal prosecutor how quickly
- would you expect this motion to be file
- filed knowing full well that the issue
- is being considered right now by the 11
- circuit to put this back on the trial
- track well it's interesting because
- because I don't know that there's a
- 12:00
- vehicle to file a procedural vehicle to
- file the motion now why do I say that
- because the case has been dismissed so
- it doesn't actually exist asending has
- Jack Smith has he appealed it yes Jack
- Smith has appealed it to the 11th
- circuit so right so can he can he file a
- motion as part of his appeal while
- they're which they're considering right
- now I think the answer is no and here's
- why factual matters can only be raised
- and litig ated and resolved ruled on in
- the trial court appell at courts have no
- what we call original jurisdiction the
- only thing they can do is saw the legal
- wood in front of them and that wood you
- know that cord of wood has been
- delivered to them once the case has been
- appealed that's why for example in DC
- once the presidential immunity uh issue
- was appealed judge chuin was was
- deprived of jurisdiction she couldn't do
- anything she couldn't act on motions she
- 13:00
- couldn't litigate she couldn't set
- motions hearing dates none of it but
- this but the appeals court only gets to
- decide those things that have been set
- in stone factually speaking by the time
- the case is appealed to them so this
- would be a new motion it would require
- new litigation new argument new factual
- determinations and rulings to be made by
- a trial court judge so that's why this
- will probably not make its way into the
- 11 circuit court of appeal's opinion
- unless they decide to take note of the
- reporting but but as we've discussed
- Brian this is kind of a it's a tricky
- one because even if they take note of
- the reporting they don't have fact
- finding capabilities so they couldn't
- even say yes we find as a matter of fact
- Donald Trump is contemplating aen Cannon
- as a possible attorney general therefore
- we're going to rule that she is now
- disqualified I think that's not the way
- it's going AG go let me finally one more
- 14:01
- thing Let me throw this at the viewers
- it could be that if they reverse her
- dismissal and I believe they will they
- won't even have to take up the fact or
- the reporting that Donald Trump May
- appoint her uh as attorney general
- because they could say listen we now
- have um this this deep well of what I
- would call judicial misconduct extreme
- favoritism to Donald Trump in a way that
- the law does not allow three reversals
- three abuses of discretion three strikes
- and you're out so they may not even need
- to get to the attorney general pece if
- they reverse her because they'll have
- ample opportunity then to supon on their
- own say by the way we're sending it back
- to the trial court but we are directing
- it be assigned to a fair independent and
- impartial judge and that's not judge
- alen Cannon okay well obviously a lot to
- look forward to here we will stay on top
- 15:00
- of this classified documents case and
- its hopeful return to the trial track so
- for those watching right now if you want
- to follow along please make sure to
- subscribe that's the best way to support
- our work the links to both of our
- channels are right here on the screen
- I'm Brian tyer Cohen and I'm Glenn
- kersner you're watching the legal
- breakdown
- [Music]
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