Trump Appeals Ruling Over Congressional Subpoena. His Brief Is a Disaster.

[DonViejo]

by Elura Nanos | 11:45 am, June 11th, 2019

President Donald Trump’s legal team appears to be having trouble course-correcting in its battle over congressional subpoenas of Trump’s financial records. Instead of revamping their legal arguments to include something that might actually convince a judge, Team Trump keeps hammering away with the same losing argument: Congress can’t have the president’s records because only the president’s own people are allowed to investigate him. Trump’s lawyers aren’t just doubling-down on their “Congress lacks authority” argument either – they’re throwing in some threats just to keep things lively.

Trump’s brief to the D.C. Circuit, filed Monday, lays out the primary argument against the congressional subpoenas: by gathering Trump’s records, Congress is illegally encroaching on the executive branch’s turf. The power to investigate, Trump argues, belongs only to the executive, and Congress should stay in the land of legislation and leave the president and his financial documents alone.

Legal Twitter is doing its part to call out the multiple face-palming aspects of the president’s brief.


1. So much winning.

U.S. District Judge for the District of D.C. Amit Mehta flatly rejected Trump’s attempt to block a subpoena in this case on grounds that Congress isn’t allowed to investigate unless it is impeaching:

It is simply not fathomable that a Constitution that grants Congress the power to remove a president for reasons including criminal behavior would deny Congress the power to investigate him for unlawful conduct — past or present — even without formally opening an impeachment inquiry.

A few days later, U.S. District Judge for the Southern District of New York Edgardo Ramos issued a mirror-image ruling in a parallel case. And yet, Trump’s people are still peddling this, “Congress can only legislate” argument.

Link to tweet

more
https://lawandcrime.com/opinion/trump-appeals-ruling-over-congressional-subpoena-his-brief-is-a-disaster/

[C_U_L8R]

1. A players hire A players, but B players hire C players and C players hire D players.

It seems we've hit the bottom of the alphabet with the Trump team.

[lark]

2. This is about nothing but SCOTUS.

This argument, the presidency is above the country is totally unfounded and illegal but one they hope the traitorous Russian Repug SCOTUS will bless. That is their audience, they just want to slow walk it to them. They want to make this go right up to the election before anything happens to hide the truth. They know if the truth is communicated widely, they will lose even with vote hacking. They have to keep it close or they lose power and go to jail.

[Grasswire2]

3. Kick to read carefully later. nt

[SWBTATTReg]

4. rump is probably not listening to his lawyers...he's gone through so many lawyers already ...

that something is up with the lawyers working on his cases and him (not listening, coming up with garbage rationale to use, etc.). rump already has proven himself to be a serial liar. If I were a lawyer, I would charge many tens of thousands of dollars per hour fee to work for him, otherwise, I'd run as fast as I could away from him.

[marble falls]

5. I don't know how he thinks he can win this. The checks and balances thing is real.

[SCVDem]

12. Cash only!

How stupid would they be to submit an invoice?

[Grasswire2]

6. diGenova? Giuliani?

what lawyers are defending this?

[EleanorR]

8. these lovely folks

Stefan Passantino, former ethics czar for trump, accused of making false statements to ethics officials.

William Consovoy, clerked for Clarence Thomas.

Patrick Strawbridge, also clerked for Thomas.

[Maru Kitteh]

7. I'm quite sure his briefs are a disaster on a regular basis.

[denbot]

9. OK, that will haunt my dreams..

Thanks M K.

[Maru Kitteh]

10. .

[uponit7771]

11. Red Don's lawyers:.." Trump is the best so that means you have to say he won"