Sunday, August 28, 2022

NARA-Lago

I was assured Trump was going to stay out of politics until after the mid-terms so he wouldn’t bring out anti-Trump voters.
Posted by at No comments:

Take A Deep Breath

Mick Mulvaney and Sean Duffy are not lawyers. The courts don’t give a wet snap what they say on TeeVee or Twitter. And what they say is pretty much stupid.

Speaking of stupid:
I respect Asha, but it’s time to step away from the Twitter machine. That advice applies generally.  Of course, it could always be worse. Yeah, that’s why the documents are classified; to cover up Trump’s innocence. Also the reason Trump never released them. Hey, he declassified them, didn’t he?

Some people go too far; some people are just stupid.
Posted by at No comments:

Over On Press The Meat Chuck Todd Had A Fit If The Vapors

When he wasn’t acting like a school child. He actually introduced the topic (hand to God) by calling it “the other ‘F’ word.”
Posted by at 1 comment:

Saturday, August 27, 2022

The Waiting Is The Hardest Part

What Popehat meant: Nah. Honestly I think this “out of her way” characterization is just Trump animus. I mean, I get it, but it’s neither reasoned nor informed analysis. Unless, as I say, you see the Court treating Trump like he has no counsel. Which is really quite a brutal slap at his attorneys. It also quickly disposes of this case, which I think the court rather wants. That gets us a lot closer. Katie Phang argues the upshot of the order is a null set. Professor Vladeck thinks there’ll be a review of what might need to be returned to Trump, at best. Either way, the end is the same. And at the other extreme: Yeah, I’m in the Phang/Vladeck camp. This will be a Pyrrhic victory for Trump, at best. And there won’t be any fireworks in the courtroom. I expect the case to be over by the time of the hearing; but I’ll admit I’m venturing out on a limb to say that. Because really, who knows?

And why don’t we all just wait and see?
Posted by at No comments:

No Longer A Constitutional Right*

Ironic, no?

*No, that’s not really what Dobbs did. But then, Trump’s privacy hasn’t really been invaded, either. I’ve read analysis that these posts by Trump aren’t going to help him in court.  Heh. 
Posted by at No comments:

Saturday Legal Round Up

As almost every schoolchild knows by now, the Presidential Records Act became law in 1978, because Nixon tried to take records with him (probably, like Trump, to destroy evidence of crimes. Yeah, I went there.). That makes it 44 years old, which may be same difference to Ms. Hanna. But the worst part is, nothing in the affidavit or the search warrant mentions the PRA because, as she astutely points out, the PRA has no criminal provisions.

But other applicable statutes do. She’s trying to raise a defense to a claim that isn’t being made against her client. And she thinks this is a good thing to do.

Wait! I’m sorry , my mistake. I thought Hanna was still on her argument about the PRA from yesterday. The PRA still has no application here. My argument still stands on that point. But her new argument is that the Espionage Act has never been used.
That’s the Twitter response. The response in court will see Trump dispatched as handily as Steve Bannon was. Because this isn’t even the semblance of a legal argument. And, again, it isn’t even true. And speaking of not even playing one on TeeVee: Mulvaney really should have quit before he got further behind. And don’t try to be clever on Twitter when you don’t know what you’re talking about. And it turns out: Also to be noted: the judge is not commenting on enjoining the review. But maybe the FBI has to return the famous blue raincoat and the razor blades.

BTW, the court is basically treating Trump’s filing as a pro se matter. Otherwise I think the judge would have thrown it out and said “Do MUCH better.” I know I was harsh on the very concept, but I can see it as a harmless grant that doesn’t interfere with the investigation and is fair to Trump. But doesn’t really give him anything, and will settle the issue of who owns the documents. Well, except maybe the raincoat.

IOW, by giving Trump part of what he wants, the judge takes away Trump’s talking point that the FBI robbed him. It may actually be a good thing to have this formally decided without protracted court hearings. And I still think the judge treated this as a filing by an ignorant lay person the better to finish it off ASAP. I would not call this, by any measure, a victory for Trump. He’s likely to end up getting absolutely nothing for it.

And there’s also this, which ends up at much the same place:
That’s how judges treat pro se parties: treat them as fairly as possible, then say “No.” And just having a master see if anything was Trump’s to keep, if it comes to that, is still saying “No.”
Posted by at No comments:

I Honestly Think You Have To Be A Lawyer…

...to appreciate how utterly atrocious and bad and stupid and inept (are you getting the idea?) this “thing” Trump is pursuing in federal court is. I don’t think anyone on Twitter or cable news has yet realized how utterly bad it is, because we all presume a certain amount of competence that seems now to be utterly lacking in Trump’s lawyers. See, e.g., Giuliani at Four Seasons, or this new entry: That’s not even vaguely legally relevant.

We assume licensed lawyers know what they’re doing. This is the rare case when we shouldn’t do that. At. All.

So this thread helps a bit; but at this point it would almost take Homer to describe what an epic fall this is . Barring that, we have this. Sing, O Muse!
Remember this is just the tip of the iceberg, and you begin to see what a joke is really is.

Meanwhile, remember the FBI found these documents in Trump’s office, his bedroom, and a basement. Anyone could have looked at these documents, including cleaning staff. Are there dots to connect?
That is suddenly a very worrisome question.
Posted by at No comments:

Dear Mick Mulvaney:

If you had any shame, you would show it by now.
Posted by at No comments:

Yup

The first part there is important, but the least of their problems.

The second part, the question of a court of competent jurisdiction, is gonna sink‘em.

As the kids say, I’ve seen enough.
These two statements, by the way, are not legal arguments. And the second, purportedly a factual statement, isn’t even true.
Posted by at No comments:

Oh Noes! Religion!!!! 🥯

(I wish I lived near this place so I could buy a bagel 🥯 on the regular, and contribute a little to the Neighbors Account.)
Posted by at No comments:

I Guess This Means The UnDead Look Is In 🧟

(Who’s going to sit Jared down and explain to him he’s mortal?)
Posted by at 1 comment:

I, For One, Welcome Trump’s New Law Defenders

And want to see them raise these defenses in court. 😈
Posted by at 1 comment:

My Head Is Starting To Hurt

So apparently Trump has issued a summons to DOJ. But Trump has yet to ask for a TRO. He’s seeking an injunction, but by the time the court can  take any action (not will, just can), the issues will be (if they aren’t already), entirely moot.

And there’s still the question of why this judge should tell that magistrate what to do. District judges don’t tell district judges what to do. Magistrates are not district judges, but what Trump is asking for is in the nature of a mandamus, a directive to take specific actions. District judges don’t generally issue those to magistrates. Nor do they just take the case away and start ruling in it. Which means it still comes back to: “Why didn’t you ask the magistrate for this relief?”

And all this barely starts to address the other problems with these filings. Trump’s “delaying action” is still just delaying himself. The only person adversely affected here is Trump. Mostly because his lawyers can’t find their asses with both hands and a flashlight.
Posted by at No comments:

Friday, August 26, 2022

This Is, Kinda Sorta…

...how you start a lawsuit.

But Trump still can’t get an ex parte (without the DOJ being able to appear) hearing on a motion to appoint a special master. Before they can even do that, they have to show why this should be a separate suit rather than a motion before the magistrate who issued the warrant.

Hint: because they don’t want it there. They think their chances are better in another court. But that court may literally not have jurisdiction ( my thinking is, it doesn’t). And if the need for a special master isn’t moot by now (99% sure it is), it will be by the time they get in the right court. So the delaying tactic is working against Trump, not for him.

This is simply not the way any of this works. Though it doesn’t bother me that it’s working this way for Trump.
Posted by at No comments:

“Redacted” Is “Canceled” In Trumpspeak 🤷

(Editor’s note:”redacted” does not mean “canceled.” Unless you think “edited” is a synonym for “extinguished.”)* I just want to point out the comments in that video are all from before today. Aside from FoxNews wondering why the FBI didn't raid earlier (?), I haven't heard anything from these clowns. I'm sure we will. But they'll still be clowns. Without doubt. So many, many reasons to not let this man near within 500 feet of any federal office, unless he is in custody.

No, seriously.

The information revealed in the affidavit indicates that the country’s national security and the safety of intelligence agents were possibly put at severe risk when national defense documents were apparently stored in a room at a resort in Florida.

It’s a little confusing – there’s been much talk in the media about classified information. Improper storing of classified information is a crime, but that is not what is being investigated here. A much more serious crime under the Espionage Act is at stake.

Even someone like a former president who initially had lawful possession of national defense information commits a felony by retaining that information after the government demands its return. Trump can not hang on to national defense documents even if, while president, he “declassified” such documents, as he claims he did.

It’s been documented that a Chinese spy penetrated Mar-a-Lago while Trump was president. It is a unsecured location. If a foreign spy got into that room and walked out with information disclosing U.S. undercover agents around the world, or how we have been monitoring and collecting classified information around the world, I see the potential harm as staggering.

"Skyfall" started with this McGuffin as the opening premise of the movie (it disappeared, largely because 007 failed to recover the records and was shot off the top of a moving train).  Just like that movie, if such information got out, we the general public would never know about it.  But the people involved certainly would.  So, far all we know, this happened.  We might as well assume the worst.  People in intelligence, here and abroad, already are.


*”Redacted” dates to the mid-19th century. It was little used until about 4 years ago. It has seen more use in that time than in the preceding 150+ years. I blame the internet. And redacted culture.
Posted by at No comments:

This Is Why Trump Is Upset

And the facts not redacted don’t make it any better: I guess the raincoat and golf balls were intended for his library, too? Oops! Silly movers! I'm kinda here for it. John Solomon. Paging John Solomon. John Solomon to the white courtesy phone, puh-leeze! And Kash Patel can go pound sand: Speaking, too, of things that won't matter a whit in court (because declassification will not be an issue).

Your reminder that Tom Fitton is not a lawyer. As I was saying earlier: we never had this problem with Camp David; or LBJ's ranch; or even Bush's "ranch." And this is what hath got wrot (weekly edition):
Posted by at No comments:

Meanwhile, Speaking Of Security At MAL

Funny, I don’t think we ever had these problems at Camp David. Or LBJ’s “Western White House” (now a national park in the Texas Hill Country).

Then again, Trump led Russian officials into the Oval Office.

I meant to publish this before the affidavit dropped.  But I failed to spend enough time on the intertoobs rather than IRL this morning.
Posted by at No comments:

Why Doth The Heathen Rage?

Probably because he knows he's screwed. No one matters but Trump. Ed. note: Popehat regularly posts about being asked to go on TeeVee, and always refusing. This tweet is sarcasm, IOW. In conclusion, as we like to remember around here:
Posted by at No comments:

Well, The People On Twitter Have…

...normalized the Trump insanity.

The rest of us have lives.

I’ll read about the affidavit, eventually. Right now I have better things to wait for.
Posted by at No comments:

Trump Is Sweating Balls…

...because the redacted affidavit drops today and his lawyers haven’t yet filed a proper complaint to give their “motion” some legitimacy (although even then it would be an ex parte action which the court would need extraordinary grounds to even consider).

Trump is watching it all go down the shitter like fragments of a torn-up document. 🚽 
Posted by at No comments:
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)