Judge Eileen Cannon held a two-hour hearing on Monday morning in Donald Trump’s criminal case over classified documents, a detailed look into past special counsels and their funding in the latest attempt by Trump’s team to undermine the case against him.
Here are some important points to know:
Tough questions for the Department of Justice: Judge Cannon was careful to say his questions were not meant to suggest sides, but he pressed Department of Justice lawyer James Pierce to explain how much the department has spent on its criminal investigation of Trump.
The judge noted that even if the office publishes its spending every six months, the financial disclosures from last fall through March of this year were late.
She also asked prosecutors for guidance in explaining the laws and rules that have regulated special counsels in the past, at one point bringing up Watergate and the time of Attorney General Janet Reno.
As Cannon’s questions were directed at Pierce, the prosecutor at one point pointed to cases in which other court decisions that had invalidated government functions in the way Cannon was investigating had been overturned, and said he expected the Justice Department to be able to file additional written arguments with the court if there was a reasonable chance of overturning Smith’s ruling.
Should Congress be more involved? Trump is also seeking to bring Congress into the conversation. Trump lawyer Emil Bove argued at Monday’s hearing that Cannon should insist on greater congressional oversight of the special counsel’s work, or that the way the office is funded should be found illegal because the money is being used in ways not approved by Congress.
The argument echoes the Trump campaign’s recent arguments to the judge that Smith is too independent from the Justice Department’s leadership. Bove also told the judge that greater congressional oversight would help curb the “anomalies” occurring in the documents litigation.
Justice Department lawyers countered in court that the special counsel was operating under established policy over decades of administration and that, with the attorney general’s permission, the department will continue to fund the prosecution of Trump. Republicans in Congress have also sought to crack down on the Justice Department’s use and funding of the special counsel’s office.
Delay, delay, delay: As the case has moved slowly forward, Trump’s lawyers have taken every opportunity in recent weeks to request additional hearings and oversight, proposing as much to Cannon at a hearing on Friday and again Monday morning.
