The reporting today couldn’t be worse for Traitor Tot, or better for the rest of us who dream of seeing him in an orange jumpsuit, looking like Grimace from the old Ronald McDonald ads.
For those of you with a life, and unfamiliar with one Evan Corcoran, he is one of Trump’s newer lawyers joining his Florida legal team on the purloined classified documents case. And at first blush, Corcoran didn’t look like a natural fit for a con man like Trump.
Corcoran started out as a federal prosecutor, then left the DOJ for private practice. Several years ago Corcoran left his practice to work in non legal venues instead. Corcoran returned to law in order to defend the human rolling Dempsey Dumpster, Steve Two Shirts Bannon on his federal obstruction charge. Trump liked the cut of his jib, and hired him on.
It seems like an odd-couple, since Corcoran had no whiff of the con coming off of him. Why he chose to return to private practice to defend a scumbag like Bannon is anybody’s guess. But one thing is for sure, when Corcoran signed on with Trump, he did so with eyes wide open.
As reported today, Corcoran was well aware of Trump’s reputation for being an unmanageable client, as well as a shady character, but told close friends and associates that he wasn’t worried about any personal liability, since the legal issues were clear, and the legal advice wrote itself. Obviously Corcoran signed up with Trump in order to provide him with qualified, straight forward legal advice.
Which led to Evan Corcoran receiving a subpoena from Special Counsel Jack Smith to show up and testify to the DCA grand jury, as well as a Smith filed motion in federal court to make Corcoran’s testimony subject to the crime/fraud exemption to the standard attorney-client privilege. The judge agreed, and Corcoran was ordered to turn over some 50 pages of documents and notes, as well as testifying to predetermined events.
Which is when my whiskers started twitching. Because the standard response from a Trump ambulance chaser to a ruling like that is to first file an appeal, and then, if forced to testify, go before the grand jury and plead the 5th Amendment to everything but your name.
Corcoran did neither. Instead he turned over the documents and notes as ordered, and spent several hours testifying before the grand jury without invoking his 5th Amendment privilege once as far as anybody knows.
Which tells me something. It tells me that Corcoran was a straight arrow. He listened to Trump, examined the evidence and circumstances, and then gave Trump Sound legal advice. When presented with a subpoena, Corcoran had no reason to ask for immunity, simply because he had counseled nothing that would put his ticket to practice law at risk. He was that rarest of all things in the Trump orbit, an ethical lawyer.
And Evan Corcoran is going to crucify El Pendejo Presidente at his upcoming trial for Obstruction of Justice, and violations of The Espionage Act. Corcoran will testify fully and honestly at trial, there’s no reason for him not to, since he’s done nothing wrong.
But that isn’t going to be what crucifies Trump at trial. What will crucify Trump at trial is is his contemporaneous notes that he turned over to Smith. Because contemporaneous notes are admissible under law to show a defendant’s state of mind.
And Trump’s state of mind was purely felonious. Part of Corcoran’s notes deal with the time frame that spanned Trump’s receipt of the federal subpoena demanding that all classified documents be returned, and the FBI raid on Mar-A-Lago raid, including the fraudulent letter signed by a Trump lawyer advising the DOJ that all classified documents had already been returned.
And according to Corcoran’s notes, Trump was Trump. He was abusive, spiteful, and pissed off! Trump angrily related that he didn’t want advice on how to return the documents, he wanted a shady legal way to keep the documents with him. And according to Corcoran’s notes, he advised Trump that there was no legal way to keep the documents once the federal government demanded their return. Now you know why Corcoran can testify with no personal risk. He followed the rules.
Now you know why I compared Evan Corcoran to Michael Cohen in the title. The differences are that Trump wasn’t under federal investigation when Cohen testified before the House committee, but Cohen was under federal indictment. Corcoran is an ethical lawyer who gave Trump sound legal advice, and Trump is under federal criminal investigation. Who knows? Maybe that candy maker can make chubby little orange Gummi Bears in orange, with yellow hair to make a buck off of Trump’s downfall. Let the good times roll.
Why did Corcoran represent Bannon? Simple. LOTS of money. Bannon is filthy (in every sense of the word) rich and unlike a certain flaming orange human shaped rectum better known as Donald J. Trump Bannon has enough sense to find truly talented lawyers and PAY them whatever they ask. I can’t help but smile at how this has turned out because one thing I’m sure of is related to your statement that Corcoran knew exactly who his client was when he signed on with Trump. Hell, he might have run his own little “con” on Trump! Why do I say that? Because as sure as I’m sitting here I know Corcoran demanded a multi-million dollar retainer. If Trump wanted him he’d have to pay Corcoran UPFRONT, and being so much better a lawyer than any of the hacks Trump actually pays attention to that retainer included some fancy language that would cover him (Corcoran) if he withdrew from the case before he’d used up all the billable hours that retainer was meant to cover. Withdraw for cause of course. Like his client Trump refusing sound, standard legal advice and forcing him to, should the authorities come a calling with subpoenas as has happened with an ever increasing number of Trump lawyers! Being as you say a straight arrow gave Corcoran the “out” he needed to walk and keep the entire retainer.
Trump may or may not know this yet. Hell, would YOU be the one who has to tell him he’s out the whole smash? Oh, Trump will try to collect one way or the other but if anything Corcoran will wind up better off with a reputation not damaged due to representing Trump, but ENHANCED for being ethical! But the bottom line is that Trump is out that entire, huge (I’m sure of it, probably at least a couple million) retainer. And if Trump starts thinking as I have that maybe, just maybe Corcoran not only foresaw things unfolding like they did but figured it was likely he’s gotten himself a “bigly” payday for what in the end won’t turn out fo have been all that much work!
If that’s the case, or even if Trump comes to believe it when he can’t get most of his money back the explosion should be epic.