With Donald Trump’s trial in New York scheduled for next week, a hearing in the prosecution of his classified documents is a reminder that the hush money case may be his only criminal case to go to trial before the election — and possibly ever. When it comes to the classified documents case, the delay is in large part due to the way U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon handled it.
In fact, the federal case in Florida was set to begin this week before Cannon postponed it indefinitely. Like Trump’s other federal case over his alleged interference in the 2020 election, this one could have gone to trial by now, or is on its way to trial, instead of being mired in uncertainty. If Trump wins the presidential election in November, he could order his federal cases to be dismissed or try to pardon himself. Any ongoing case in his two state cases could be postponed – because the Georgian’s fate is already unclear on appeal – even if he cannot forgive himself as president for these cases.
Wednesday’s hearing will focus on defense dismissal requests, including Trump co-defendant Walt Nauta’s vengeful prosecution claim. However Cannon resolves these contested motions, the fact that she may entertain them risks even more unnecessary delay. Given the Trump-appointed judge’s relaxed handling of the case thus far, it won’t be surprising if she takes some time to resolve these issues.
But what will be discussed Wednesday represents just a small portion of the issues pending in the case against the former president and presumptive Republican Party nominee over allegations that he hoarded sensitive government documents and obstructed efforts to retrieve them. (Trump and his two co-defendants have pleaded not guilty.)
In a recent New York Times op-ed, a former CIA lawyer explained how Cannon has “made almost no progress in the last 11 months” since Trump was indicted. That attorney, Brian Greer, noted that Cannon still hasn’t addressed the biggest issues, including how classified evidence can be used at trial, and that she won’t begin to do so until August. “The world is watching and Judge Cannon is proving she is not fit for this moment,” the attorney concluded.
It’s hard not to agree.
Every motion is important, including the ones Cannon is considering Wednesday, especially because a ruling for the defense would plunge the case into even greater chaos. But beyond that, given Cannon’s slow approach coupled with the unknown outcome of the 2024 election, it remains to be seen whether this case still will be a case next year. (Since this question naturally arises, I explained that, despite Cannon’s actions and inactions, I don’t think Special Prosecutor Jack Smith would be successful in removing the judge, which may be why he hasn’t tried.)
Even if Trump loses another election, Cannon will still have the power to cause all kinds of mischief at and during any trial. Her steps so far all but guarantee that such a trial will not occur until the four-times indicted suspect potentially becomes president again.
Subscribe to the Deadline: Legal newsletter for weekly updates on the top legal stories, including Supreme Court news, the Donald Trump cases and more.
This article was originally published on MSNBC.com
