Dear listeners,
As we’ve discussed, the Supreme Court threw a major wrench into the various prosecutions of Donald Trump with their ruling on presidential immunity. Now, the trial courts overseeing his cases are figuring out what to do about it. Well, some of them are — the RICO prosecution in Atlanta was already so hopelessly fucked that they probably won’t need to think about it for a couple of years. And the documents case in Florida is, for now, dismissed. But in New York, Judge Juan Merchan is proceeding toward sentencing, notwithstanding immunity being one of Trump’s several issues for appeal. And in Washington, DC, Judge Tanya Chutkan has issued a scheduling order to figure out how to proceed — and the issue probably won’t even be fully briefed until after the election.
Meanwhile, Judge Chutkan has ruled that Trump was not a victim of selective or vindictive prosecution. A committee of the District of Columbia Bar Association has recommended that Jeffrey Clark’s law license be suspended. Sen. Bob Menendez has been convicted — showing that bribery is still illegal, and that sometimes the government can win a conviction even after the McDonnell ruling and even with significant evidentiary restrictions due to the Speech or Debate Clause. (Of course, when the accused has been paid in literal gold bars, that helps with painting a picture in a jury’s head). The Washington Post has a somewhat odd story about an investigation in a possible Egyptian effort to bribe Donald Trump that did not amount to much. And the QAnon Shaman has won a court order instructing the government to return his headdress.
We hope you enjoy the episode,
Josh
Share this post