Our most recent book, Divided We Stand, looks at the 2020 election and Trump's disregard for law.
Destruction of government documents is a crime. So is the retaining classified material.
A judge on Monday dismissed the federal indictment against former president Donald Trump on charges of mishandling classified documents — his second seismic legal victory in less than a month, following a historic Supreme Court decision on immunity.
U.S. District Judge Aileen M. Cannon’s 93-page ruling that special counsel Jack Smith was improperly appointed is a triumph for Trump, even if it is eventually reversed on appeal. Trump’s lawyers have attempted long-shot argument after long-shot argument to dismiss the case before this gambit succeeded far beyond expectations. Other courts have rejected arguments similar to the one that Trump’s team made in Florida about the legality of Smith’s appointment.
The Justice Department is highly likely to appeal the decision, and the issue may eventually reach the Supreme Court. By dismissing the entire indictment, Cannon’s decision also means that the charges are dropped for Trump’s two co-defendants, Waltine “Walt” Nauta and Carlos De Oliveira.
Even if Cannon’s ruling is eventually overruled, the decision to dismiss Trump’s indictment adds to a string of legal victries for him in recent weeks, including a sweeping Supreme Court ruling July 1 that gives former presidents broad immunity for their official acts while in office.
