Trump classified docs judge to weigh alleged 'unlawful' appointment of Special Counsel Jack Smith
Judge Aileen Cannon holds hearing Friday on motion to dismiss Trump case
By Brooke Singman Fox News
Published June 21, 2024 4:00am EDT | Updated June 21, 2024 4:14am EDT
The judge presiding over former President Trump's classified records case is holding a hearing Friday to consider whether the appointment of U.S. Special Counsel Jack Smith and the funding of his investigations is "unlawful."
Judge Aileen Cannon of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida had postponed the trial stemming from Smith’s investigation into Trump’s alleged improper retention of classified records indefinitely.
Upon postponing the trial, Cannon scheduled deadlines for reports on June 10 and 17 and a nonevidentiary hearing on a motion to dismiss on Friday, "based on unlawful appointment and funding of special counsel."
Cannon expanded Friday's hearing to allow amici to argue before the court, as well as Trump defense attorneys and federal prosecutors.
Former Attorney General Ed Meese, who served under former President Reagan, filed an amicus brief in the case, in which he argues that Attorney General Merrick Garland’s appointment of Smith as special counsel – a private citizen at the time – is in violation of the appointments clause of the Constitution.
Garland appointed Smith as special counsel on Nov. 18, 2022 – just days after Trump announced he would run for president in 2024.
"Not clothed in the authority of the federal government, Smith is a modern example of the naked emperor," the brief states.
"Improperly appointed, he has no more authority to represent the United States in this Court than Bryce Harper, Taylor Swift, or Jeff Bezos," they argued.
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