Myth: This Case Will Be Resolved... 🦆

Myth: Shifting the case to federal court immediately ends it, with no expense borne by the federal government.

Fact: We're now in for significant litigation over whether the Westfall Act *applies* here—both in the district court and on appeal—for which taxpayers are on the hook. https://t.co/HUHiJjt5oY

— Steve Vladeck (@steve_vladeck) September 11, 2020

...before Trump is a lame duck.

(The Westfall Act, by the way, provides for "sovereign immunity" (a legal doctrine that the sovereign cannot be sued in civil court) when the government employee is "acting within the scope of his [sic] office or employment."  This is the relevant language Barr is resting on:

Upon certification by the Attorney General that the defendant employee was acting within the scope of his office or employment at the time of the incident out of which the claim arose, any civil action or proceeding commenced upon such claim in a United States district court shall be deemed an action against the United States under the provisions of this title and all references thereto, and the United States shall be substituted as the party defendant.

How slandering an individual is "acting within the scope of his office or employment at the time of the incident" (not the rape; what Trump said about Ms. Carroll) is a mystery to most legal observers, including yours truly.  Yes, this will delay the case until after the election.  But the idea it will impact the election if Trump is brought into court in October (he wouldn't be anyway) is ludicrous, IMHO.  No, I think Barr is acting as Trump's consigliere, and trying to banish this case altogether.  This is not an action that will be taken up by Biden's DOJ, and Ms. Carroll's suit won't melt away in the spring thaw of 2021.)