In any case in which a plea of not guilty is entered, the trial of a defendant charged in an information or indictment with the commission of an offense shall commence within seventy days from the filing date (and making public) of the information or indictment, or from the date the defendant has appeared before a judicial officer of the court in which such charge is pending, whichever date last occurs. (18 U.S. Code § 3161 – Time limits and exclusions
Well, well well… If you think you’ve seen weird combination freak-outs/meltdowns from Trump get ready because like the song says “You ain’t seen nothin yet!” I wrote recently about the federal speedy trial statute, that stuff you see listed at the beginning. I said then, and believe it more than ever that there’s a golden (real gold – not fake like Trump’s toilet) to taunt the hell out of Trump. Because while criminal defendants have the right to a speedy trial (and again I note it’s spelled out in law) they can, and usually do waive that right. Trump’s problem however is he can’t just quietly tell the judge he’d rather hold off for some unspecified period of time. No folks, it’s not that easy.
Like any other defendant Trump has to formally waive that right on the record in court!
He, or his lawyers have to appear in court and tell the judge Trump does NOT want a speedy trial and why he needs more time as well as how much time that might be. With prosecutors standing at the ready to say “What’s the problem? WE are ready to go. And in this case Special Prosecutor Jack Smith has already taken away one of Trump’s best grounds for getting a delay – except for the actual 31 classified, National Security documents listed in the indictment all of the discovery material has already been delivered to Trump’s legal team! Trump has two choices – man up and go to trial and quickly or run screaming in terror shouting “HELP ME – they are actually coming after me this time and I’m afraid!” He won’t of course admit the important part which is the reason he’s afraid is because he’s guilty as charged, but that’s a whole new discussion.
Now, in reality even though judge Cannon has followed the southern FL custom of being a “rocket docket” just the process of Trump’s lawyers getting the necessary security clearances is likely to push the trial date back some. But with things set to kick off August 14, within that 70 day speedy trial requirement Trump is sitting in the most uncomfortable spot he’s ever sat. Kinda like one of the infamous Vlad the Impaler’s victims. THAT my friends means the taunting I advocated in the article I linked to should commence in earnest.
This news is only an hour old as I’m writing this and quite a few thoughts started jumping around in my mind. First was the Stan character from South Park with his “Really? REALLY” reaction in the Oval Office. After that, and in no particular order here are some others:
There’s probably a lot of brown organic matter and not just Trump’s in offices and hallways at Mar A Lago. I don’t know if it’s true, but “people say” numerous trucks from that Serve Pro company who’d ads about cleaning up major messes/damage claim when they’re done it will be “Like it never happened!” Trump will surely, before the day is out be on the phone to Ronna McDaniel demanding the RNC contract with that company to have at least one Truck and crew wherever Trump is 24/7 from now on.
What will people in the GOP, especially other Presidential hopefuls do? Will they challenge Trump to go to trial as quickly as possible and more importantly goad him to do so? And even more importantly do as I suggest and taunt him if he fights to delay things?
Will, with yesterday’s WaPo articles (and one of the authors suggests more articles with more details are coming) putting him under the microscope Chris Wray assign however many FBI agents it takes to do the background checks needed? Those things take time because they dig deep into someone’s life including going wherever a person has lived, pulling records, talking to people and not just people the applicant has listed. So again, will Wray “git er done?” Then there’s the question which I don’t think is crazy to ask which is what if one or more of Trump’s attorneys CAN’T qualify for a security clearance?
Judge Cannon evokes more than one question. Starting with “Did she get the memo” so to speak and decide to play things straight from now on? I for one don’t think that’s a given. Maybe she’s setting herself up to be able to recuse herself and use doing so as the start of a long process to rehabilitate he self-shattered reputation. Think about it. She’s already under withering criticism and pressure for having effectively acted as a Trump lawyer already. Literally offering better arguments from the bench than the defense was making which is one reason her appellate circuit slapped her down so hard. This trial date will likely cause Trump to tee off on HER and direct MAGA nation’s fury at her. At which point she can with justification issue a statement saying with her presiding no one, Democrat, Republican or Independent will have confidence in the trial and another judge should for the good of the justice system take over.
Alas, there are potential dark reasons why Cannon has done this. She’s learned a few lessons since her humiliation and has been reminded of all the ways she can help Trump. Yes, the trial date she’s set makes it LOOK good but it could be a smokescreen. As I said the trial will almost certainly not start in August. Maybe not even this fall. She can slow walk the motions that Trump will file, and fights over evidence including and especially evidence obtained via the crime-fraud exception to attorney-client privilege is in fact something legitimate to have a hearing on. Of course, it’s already been litigated but Cannon can still delay things with that and be within boundaries. But other motions, even dubious ones that should be dismissed on the spot might get a hearing too.
Still, we are looking at a trial that even if it doesn’t start soon will do probably do so no later than after the turn of this year. Once things get underway the first thing will be jury selection and a judge can have HUGE influence on that process. There are multiple ways Cannon can get away with installing some potential “Trump jurors” who will ignore the evidence and refuse to convict. So my thinking is that while it’s understandable, okay even to have a little hope that judge Cannon wants to start coloring inside the lines again we are a long way from being sure she intends to do so.
Then there’s how Trump (and his lawyers) have been taking all this! I can only imagine the panic that’s set in. Shouted arguments at Bedminster (now that I think of it Trump has gone north for the summer) and phone lines melting as Trump talks to lawyers not present. And others. Hell, the very air cell phone signals are travelling through of conversations between Trump and others is super-heated!
But he’s terrified. Worse than he is in the title picture. I thought of something Roger Kahn wrote about Dodger pitcher Joe Black, the first black pitcher to win a World Series game. “Beanball Wars” wars in major league baseball were part of the game back then and one should know that unlike what you’ve seen your entire life player didn’t wear batting helmets in the old days. Things got truly dangerous at times. Black (pitchers had to take their turn at bat too back then) often got thrown at, as did other Dodger hitters. If you think racism is bad now it was worse in sports back then, and things often got downright dangerous on the field.
In one game that hat turned into a beanball war and the Dodgers had gained control Black knew he was going to get thrown at the next time he came to bat. As Kahn wrote he was ducking away during the pitcher’s windup. His response an inning later was to deliver what Kahn said was the most terrifying pitch he ever saw. A journeyman player dug in at the plate and Black, who had a great fastball power a pitch at the guy’s shoulder. He ducked (understandably) in such panic his baseball cap left his head – and the pitch sailed between the foot of space between the cap and the player’s head! Pale with fear he hit a weak popout.
And that’s how I think Trump (and his lawyers) are feeling as of nine this morning.
We’re about to see fireworks well before the 4th of July, and for long afterwards. Right now I wish my printer worked so I could make a full page copy of that title pic and stick it on the wall. Hell, I’d make multiple copies and put them on every wall!
For now I’m forced to wait and see what a terrified Trump will do. My gut says he’ll ask for a delay and get all pi$$y about the attention his doing so will generate. But what then? He SHOULD be mocked by journalists. And other GOP Presidential candidates. Hell, anyone in the GOP should be asking, including directly to his face why he’s AFRAID to meet judge Cannon’s date for starting his trial.
The trial won’t be in August, but it might be this year. It’s a documents case and the defense, at least the client, should already have a good idea of what info will be entered into evidence. So, while motions will be made, most can be disposed of rather quickly. The one truly thorny issue is the piercing of attorney-client privilege as pertains to Evan Corcoran and his voluminous notes.
I don’t think it will take all that long to do the security clearances. These aren’t permanent clearances, they are just for the duration of this trial and will only concern those items the prosecution has already sanitized as much as possible to be able to use in court. They are not going to be interviewing every neighbor these attorneys have ever had. It’ll probably be a records check (it’s really hard to maintain a bar card with a criminal record), credit report and possibly a few interviews if anything looks hinky. If TFG is smart, he’ll try to hire a lawyer who routinely deals with national defense info, if he can find one willing to work for him.
Ok, let’s talk a bit more about security clearances. It DOES sometimes happen that people suddenly in a position to have access to Top Secret information are granted what are called Provisional Security Clearances if they have a background of “solid citizen” conduct and have proven capable of handling authority and other types of information. For example as CEO of Exxon Rex Tillerson may not have had access to National Security information but sure has hell knew all kinds of sensitive, proprietary stuff. Judgement calls can be and are made. And sometimes even the initial check to grant a provisional clearance raises red flags, say as was the case with Jared Kushner but as President Trump could and did override the professionals to grant him a provisional, and then full security clearance.
Here’s the thing though. Once you’ve had clearance to see Top Secret information and even information with additional levels of classification your responsibility doesn’t end once you are done with them. Or leave whatever position you had that led to your getting clearance and learning classified information. Or even if your clearance is revoked for cause. Nope, you have to keep what you learned to yourself for the rest of your life with the only exception of being granted the okay in limited, specific circumstances to discuss it. For good measure as part of your briefing when all this gets explained to them people have to sign a form that spells out both the requirement to not reveal anything they learn but ALSO the penalties for revealing anything.
So while you have a point there’s still a rigorous process that can only be expedited so much. Yes, the collection of originating agencies and/or departments signed off on using the 31 documents listed in the indictment. At least some will likely still include redactions. As for the jury, I pity the small army of security professionals who will have to be standing by to run the names of and gather whatever they can on every single prospective juror that gets Notice to show up for this trial. Vior Dire can be a lengthy process in any high profile trial and will be more so in this one. For a trial where National Security is involved it gets to a whole new level. There are sure to be arguments about something in a prospective juror’s background that raise red flags. Sometimes both sides readily agree that some people shouldn’t be on the jury. But you can bet the farm that there will be jurors who have NO business being in the room with, much less seeing even part of even a redacted document that Team Trump desperately wants on the jury and who prosecutors will rightly want dismissed for cause. For those who don’t know, each side is granted a certain number of Peremptory challenges, people they can have dismissed without discussion. The number can vary for different reasons. However, there is no limit to the number of potential jurors that can be dismissed for cause. Just what will constitute “cause” on National Security ground will I’m certain come up both in pre-trial motions and during the Voir Dire process.
(“Voir Dire”)
Oops. Thanks for the catch on my typo. I’ll see if I can’t go back and fix it.