An onslaught of bad news for the rule of law over the past few hours:
- Attorney General Pam Bondi has appointed Ed Martin(!) as a special attorney to investigate trumped-up mortgage fraud allegations against New York Attorney General Letitia James via a Virginia grand jury and against Sen. Adam Schiff (D-CA) via a Maryland grand jury. Martin, unable to win confirmation by the Senate as D.C. U.S. attorney, was shifted over to head up the so-called “Weaponization Working Group” at Main Justice. Now he has been imbued as a “special attorney” with many of the same powers as a U.S. attorney, but who can roam freely without needing to be a resident of the judicial district in which he’s operating.
- Acting U.S. Attorney John A. Sarcone III of the Northern District of New York has sent two subpoenas to the office of New York Attorney General Letitia James as part of separate unprecedented federal acts of retaliation for (i) her winning civil fraud case against Donald Trump; and (ii) her successful lawsuit against the National Rifle Association. Sarcone, you may recall, was bypassed by local judges who declined to extend his temporary role. Instead, the White House used a workaround whereby Sarcone was appointed his own first assistant and automatically ascended into the role when his initial term ended.
Note the avoidance of Senate confirmation for the hacks enlisted to do the dirtiest retribution work.
At the same time as the DOJ weaponization news was unfolding, two Trump appointees on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals neutralized the threat to the Trump administration of a criminal contempt of court proceeding for its brazen violation of Chief Judge James Boasberg’s order blocking the Alien Enemies Act removals. By abandoning Boasberg, the appeals court surrendered to Trump in a historic constitutional clash that threatens the power and autonomy of the judicial branch.
Other than that, happy Friday?
