Andrew Napolitano Blasts Judge Who Criticized Mueller

Federal judge T.S. Ellis's rant accusing special counsel Robert Mueller of trying to remove President Donald Trump from power was "irrelevant," and meant "nothing," legally, Fox News legal analyst Andrew Napolitano said Monday.

Napolitano, a former judge, pointed out on "America's Newsroom" that Ellis was merely expressing a "personal opinion," and that there was "no evidence in the courtroom in front of him to justify that kind of an opinion. It drew enormous headlines over the weekend because it's a political narrative with which Trump and reporters agree."

Even though what the judge said "is probably correct," according to Napolitano, "it is irrelevant to the ruling on the matter.

"The matter was [Paul] Manafort moves to dismiss the indictment against him on the theory that Mueller doesn't have the jurisdiction to prosecute me for bank fraud. The judge says, where does the jurisdiction come from? It comes from a letter authorizing it from the appointing authority, [Deputy Attorney General] Rod Rosenstein."

Even if the judge rules in Manafort's favor, Napolitano continued, the case will most likely continue with a different prosecutor.

"Legally, it's of no significance," what Ellis said, Napolitano added. "And Judge Ellis… knows that."

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