Ty Cobb, former White House lawyer under then-President Donald Trump, blasted the "incompetence" of Florida federal Judge Aileen Cannon for continuing to delay the classified docs trial against his former boss, adding his belief that the trial will never happen.
Cobb made the comments in an interview with CNN on Wednesday, hours after Cannon held hearings in Fort Pierce, Florida, on motions to dismiss made by Trump's legal team and his co-defendants.
The original trial date was scheduled for this past Monday.
"I don't think this case will move at all," Cobb told CNN. "And I think the fact that she's scheduling hearings, multiple hearings, sort of one or two motions at a time is compelling evidence of that. Most federal judges would have long ago ruled on all the pending motions.
"And frankly, this is a case that should've started trial yesterday or two days ago when the original trial date was set. This case could have easily gotten to trial. Only her incompetence and perceived bias has prevented that," added Cobb, who has been a frequent critic of Cannon.
Cobb in March called Cannon "embarrassing" and "unhinged" over rulings she had made to that point; in early April Cobb called Cannon "incompetent" and predicted she'd be removed from the case; and earlier this month he said her ruling to postpone the start of the trial indefinitely was "tragic" and "inexplicable."
Lawyers for Trump and his co-defendants — his valet Walt Nauta and Mar-a-Lago property manager Carlos De Oliveira — filed multiple motions seeking to have the case thrown out. Wednesday's hearings were the first since Cannon, on May 7, indefinitely postponed the trial of the former president.
Trump pleaded not guilty last June to the federal charges of unlawfully retaining national defense information, conspiracy to obstruct justice and making false statements.
Cobb scoffed when asked about Cannon's assertions in court Wednesday that it would be "hard" for jurors "to detect what's different in these counts," addressing defense concerns about how prosecutors structured their indictment.
"I think most jurors will have a triple-digit IQ," Cobb told CNN. "And that's probably not familiar territory for Judge Cannon. But I don't think they'll have the difficulty that she perceives."
Cobb served two years as White House counsel under Trump.
Information from AFP was used in this report.
Mark Swanson ✉
Mark Swanson, a Newsmax writer and editor, has nearly three decades of experience covering news, culture and politics.
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